J. 


V 


I 


I 


i 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2015 


https://archive.org/details/woodnnanshandbookOOnort 


-THE 


WOODMAN'S  Hand  Book 


A  CoMPRKHKNsivK  History 

OF  THK 


TOGETHER  WITH  VALUABLE  INFOKMATION  ON 

frat:ernai,  insurance  socinTms, 

Statistics,  Selected  I^iterature,  Woodmen 
Songs,  Poems,  Stc, 


ILLUSTRATED. 


Compiled  by 

W.  A.  NoRTHCOTT,  Hkad  Consul  M.  W.  a. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1894, 
By  W.  A.  NORTHCOTT, 
In  the  office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington,  D.  C. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS. 


o 


Introduction,       .        .        .        .        .  '  . 

.  Fage  3 

Life  Insurance,        ...        .  . 

a 

5 

Fraternal  Life  Insurance,    .  . 

u 

31 

National  Fraternal  Congress,  .  . 

(I 

97 

Statistics  Fraternal  Societies, 

■  (( 

107 

Reserve  Fund, 

li 

1^9 

Modern  Woodmen  of  America,    .  . 

a 

197 

History  Modern  Woodmen  of  America,  . 

u 

261 

Memorial  Hon.  M.  W.  Mathews, 

u 

302 

Roll  of  Honor,        =       .       .       .  . 

u 

323 

Medical  Department,    .       .  . 

IC 

339 

Royal  Neighbors,    .        .       .       .      ,  «  , 

(C 

357 

Songs,  ....... 

iC 

369 

Selected] Literature  {Appendix),        .  . 

(( 

i 

Humorous, 

'  '  '  ■  (( 

lii 

Poetry,  [       .       ,       .       .  . 

u 

Ixxv 

USTRA  TIONS. 


W.  A.  Northcott,  Head  Consul,  Frontispiece. 

C:  W.  Hawes,  Head  Clerk,   Page  8 

Board  of  Directors,   24 

D.  C.  Zink,  Head  Banker,        ......  32 

H.  C.  Hedges,  Head  Adviser,   40 

Group  Head  Officers,   43 

Group  Head  Physicians,   56 

Dr.  C.  A.  McCollom,  Head  Physician,    ....  64 

Dr.  I.  L.  Potter,  Head  Physician,   72 

Humphrey  Pierce  (Auditing  Committee),  ...  80 
Dr.  H.  O.  Larrabee  (Auditing  Committee),       ..."  96 

Perry  Perkins  (Auditing  Committee),    ....  104 

Ritual  and  Laws  Committee,  1892,      .       .       .       ,  '    .  112 

Credentials  Committee,  1892,   120 

Rev.  P.  P.  Farmiloe,  Head  Chaplain,   128 

James  A.  Lombard  (Mileage  and  Per  Diem  Committee),  144 

Mileage  and  Per  Diem  Committee,   152 

State  Deputies,   "160 

Head  Consul,  Private  Secretary,  and  State  Deputies,      .  161 

Group  Head  Officers  and  Ritual  Committee,  ...  168 

Presidents  State  Meetings,  1894,   175 

Secretaries  State  Meetings,  1894,   ••  1^4 

Head  Officers  and  Delegates  Omaha  Head  Camp,  1892,    .  200 

Head  Camp,  Omaha,  1892,   -  2O8 

Head  Clerk's  Office,  Fulton,  111.,   -'216 

Members  Pioneer  Camp,  No.  1,  Lyons,  Iowa,        .       .  286 

Group  Male  Employes  Head  Clerk's  Office,  Pulton,  111.,  ,  ''248-250 

Group  Female  Employes  Head  Clerk's  Office,  Pulton,  111.,  "256-272 

Ritual  Committee,  1894,   280 

Woodmen  Picnic,  Winterssct,  Iowa   298 

Hon.  M.  W.  Mathews,   304 

Prize  Banner,    .       .       .       ,   "  312 

Group  Officers  Camp  No.  120,  Omaha,  Neb.,      .       .       .  "  320 

Group  Officers  Camp  No.  51,  Rockford,  111.,   ...  "  328 

Group  Officers  Camp  No.  60,  Elgin,  111.,  336 

Group  Officers  Camp  No.  2002,  Kansas  City,  Mo.,        .  344 

Royal  Neighbors  —  Head  Officers,   '■•  352 

Royal  Neighbors  —  Board  of  Managers,        ...  "  353 

Group  Royal  Neighbors,   "  360 

Group  Royal  Neighbors  in  Camp  Hall,  Omaha,  Neb.,  364 

Team  Camp  No.  365,  Madison,  Wis.,   "371 

Team  Victory  Camp,  No.  452,  Greenville,  111.,  .  .  "  ii 
Group  Head  Officers  on  Log  Wagon,  1891.        ..."  lii 

C.  C.  Hassler  (Poet  Laureate),   Ixxv 


INTRODUCTION. 


RATERNAL  insurance   differs    from  all  other 


bership.  It  is  a  representative  government  resting  upon 
the  shoulders  of  its  members.  Every  important  measure 
must  be  understood  and  approved  by  the  majority.  A 
fraternal  society  succeeds  best  where  its  membership  un- 
derstands its  full  workings  ;  knows  fully  the  system  upon 
which  it  is  founded  ;  is  fully  acquainted  with  the  details 
of  its  management ;  knows  where  every  dollar  goes  ;  and 
is  fully  imbued  with  its  early  history,  its.  progress,  its 
mistakes,  and  its  great  achievements. 

Not  only  is  it  necessary  that  the  membership  have  a 
full  knowledge  of  the  society,  but  it  is  also  necessary  that 
all  facts  be  so  concisely  collated  and  published  that  the 
world  at  large  may  readily  understand  the  same.  Fra- 
ternal insurance  needs  only  to  be  known  among  men  to 
be  appreciated  and  endorsed  ;  it  is  a  new  force  in  the 
world's  affairs,  and  only  just  beginning  to  receive  the 
consideration  which  its  magnitude  commands.  The  best 
way  to  reach  the  people  is  by  a  free  use  of  "  printer's 
ink."  Every  fact  published  in  regard  to  fraternal  in- 
surance is  a  potent  factor  in  its  development. 

This  book  is  intended  to  be  a  statement  of  the  general 
features  of  fraternal  insurance,  together  with  statistics 


classes  of  insurance,  from  the  fact  that  the 
society  is  under  the  direct  control  of  its  mem- 


4 


Introduction. 


pertaining  to  the  individual  societies,  and  more  particu- 
larly in  regard  to  our  own  order,  The  Modern  Woodmen 
OF  America.  I  hope  that  this  book  will  be  of  benefit  to 
the  Deputies  in  ihe  field,  in  providing  them  with  the  am- 
munition to  be  used  in  battling  for  the  order.  It  is  hoped 
that  the  officers  of  the  Head  and  Local  Campg,  and  those 
connected  with  the  management,  may  find  much  valu- 
able information  in  its  perusal.  Every  Neighbor  will  be 
benefited  by  learning  more  about  our  great  order.  These 
pages  may  have  some  little  efi'ect  in  giving  the  public  a 
better  idea  of  fraternal  insurance,  and  in  drawing  the 
different  societies  together  in  closer  fraternal  comity.  All 
fraternal  societies  should  be  united  in  promoting  the 
great  work  of  protecting  the  homes  of  our  land. 

But  little  merit  can  attach  to  this  book  by  reason  of 
any  original  matter  furnished  by  the  author,  but  the  good 
<^iat  it  will  do  will  come  from  collating  and  preserving 
some  of  the  best  thoughts  heretofore  published  on  the 
subjects  herein  treated.  It  is  hoped  that  this  book  may 
be  regarded  as  only  a  step  in  the  right  direction,  and  may 
have  importance  as  being  one  of  the  early  contributions 
to  what  in  the  future  will  become  the  ripe  and  abundant 
literature  of  one  of  the  greatest  classes  of  benevolent  or- 
ganizations known  to  mankind. 

Fraternally  submitted, 


Head  Consul  M.  W,  A, 


Greenville,  III.,  October  1st,  1894. 


\ 


] 

i 


4  [ife]  Insurance. 


i 


\ 


Sermon  by  Rev.  DeWitt  Talmage^  Preached 
in  the  Brooklyn  Tabernacle, 


And  let  them  gather  all  the  food  of 
those  good  years  that  come,  and  lay  up 
corn  under  the  hand  of  Pharoah,  and 
let  them  keep  food  in  the  cities. 

—  Genesis  XLI.,  35th  Verse. 


WORDS  were  the  words  of 
ph,  the  president  of  the  first 
insurance  company  the  world 
Pharoah  had  a  dream  that 
him.  He  thought  he  stood  on 
the  banks  of  the  river  Xile,  and  saw  coming  up  out  of 
the  river  seven  fat,  sleek,  glossy  cows,  and  they  began  to 
browse  in  the  thick  grass.  Nothing  frightful  about  that. 
But  after  them,  coming  up  out  of  the  same  river,  he  saw 
seven  cows  that  were  gaunt  and  starved,  and  the  worst- 
looking  cows  that  had  ever  been  seen  in  the  land,  and  in 
the  ferocity  of  hunger  they  devoured  their  seven  prede- 
cessors. Pharoah,  the  king,  sent  for  Joseph  to  decipher 
these  midnight  hieroglyphics.  Joseph  made  short  work 
of  it,  and  intimated  that  the  seven  fat  cows  that  came 
out  of  the  river  were  seven  years  with  plenty  to  eat ;  the 
seven  emaciated  cows  that  followed  them  were  seven 
years  with  nothing  to  eat.  ''Now,"  said  Joseph,  ''let  us 
take  one-fifth  of  the  corn  crop  of  the  seven  prosperous 
years  and  keep  it  as  a  provision  for  the  seven  years  in 
which  there  shall  be  no  corn  crop." 

The  king  took  the  counsel,  and  appointed  Joseph,  be- 
cause of  his  integrity  and  public-spiritedness,  as  the 


8 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


president  of  the  undertaking.  The  farmers  paid  one- 
fifth  of  their  income  as  a  premium.  In  all  the  towns 
and  cities  there  were  branch-houses.  This  great  Egyp- 
tian life  insurance  company  had  millions  of  dollars  of 
assets.  After  a  while  the  dark  days  came,  and  the  whole 
nation  would  have  starved  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  pro- 
vision they  had  made  for  the  future.  But  now  these  suf- 
fering families  have  nothing  to  do  but  go  up  and  collect 
the  amount  of  their  life  policies.  The  Bible  puts  it  in 
one  short  phrase  :  In  all  the  land  of  Egypt  there  was 
bread."  I  say  this  was  the  Fikst  Life  Insurance  Com- 
pany. It  was  divinely  organized.  It  had  in  it  all  the 
advantages  of  the  "whole  life  plan,"  of  the  "tontine 
plan,"  of  the  "endowment  plan,"  and  all  the  other  good 
plans.  We  are  told  that  Rev.  Dr.  Anhate,  of  Lincoln- 
shire, England,  originated  the  first  life  insurance  com- 
pany in  1688.  No,  it  is  as  old  as  the  corn-cribs  of  Egypt, 
and  God  himself  was  the  author  and  originator.  If  that 
were  not  so  I  would  not  take  your  time  and  mine  in  a 
Sabbath  discussion  of  this  subject.  I  feel  it  is  a  theme 
vital,  religious,  and  of  infinite  import  —  the  morals  of 
life  and  fire  insurance.  It  seems  to  me  that  it  is  time 
for  the  pulpit  to  speak  out. 

But  what  does  the  Bible  say  in  regard  to  this  subject  ? 

If  the  Bible  favors  the  institution  I  will  favor  it  ;  if  the 
Bible  denounces  it  I  will  denounce  it.  In  addition  to 
the  forecast  of  Joseph  in  the  text,  I  call  your  attention 
to  Paul's  comparison.  Here  is  one  man  who,  through 
neglect,  fails  to  support  his  family  while  he  lives  or  after 
he  dies.  Here  is  another  man  who  abhors  the  scriptures 
and  rejects  God.  Which  of  these  men  are  the  worst  ? 
Well,  you  say  the  latter.  Paul  says  the  former.  Paul 
says  the  man  who  neglects  to  care  for  his  household  is 
more  obnoxious  than  a  man  who  rejects  the  scriptures. 
"  He  that  provideth  not  for  his  own,  and  especially  those 
of  his  own  household,  is  worse  than  an  infidel." 


Major  Charles  W.  Hawes,  Head  Clerk  Modern  Woodmen  of  America, 
Fulton,  111. 


The  Woodman^'s  Hand-Book. 


9 


Life  insurance  companies  help  most  of  us  to  provide  for 
our  families  after  we  are  gone. 

But  if  we  have  the  money  to  pay  the  premiums  and 
neglect  it,  we  have  no  right  to  expect  mercy  at  the  hand 
of  God  in  the  judgment.  We  are  worse  than  Tom  Paine, 
worse  than  Voltaire,  and  worse  than  Shaftesbury.  The 
Bible  declares  it :  we  are  worse  than  an  infidel.  After 
the  certificate  of  death  has  been  made  out,  and  the 
ninety  days  have  passed,  and  the  officer  of  a  life  insur- 
ance company  comes  into  the  bereft  household  and  pays 
down  the  hard  cash  on  an  insurance  policy,  that  officer 
of  the  company  is  performing  a  positively  religious  rite, 
according  to  the  Apostle  James,  who  says  :  True 
religion  and  undefiled  before  God  and  the  father  is  tliis  : 
to  visit  the  fatherless  and  the  widow  in  their  afifliction," 
and  so  on. 

When  men  think  of  their  death  they  are  apt  to  think 
of  it  only  in  connection  with  their  spiritual  welfare,  and 
not  of  the  devastation  in  the  household  which  will  come 
because  of  their  emigration  from  it.  It  is  meanly  selfish 
for  you  to  be  so  absorbed  in  the  heaven  to  which  you  are 
going  that  you  forget  what  is  to  become  of  your  wife  and 
children  after  you  go.  You  can  go  out  of  this  world  not 
leaving  them  a  dollar  and  yet  die  happy  if  you  could  not 
provide  for  them.  You  can  trust  them  in  the  hands  of 
the  God  who  owns  all  the  harvests  and  the  herds  and  the 
flocks  ;  but  if  you  could  pay  the  premium  on  a  policy 
and  neglect  them,  it  is  a  mean  thing  for  you  to  go  up  to 
heaven  luhile  they  go  to  the  poor-house. 

You,  at  death,  move  into  a  mansion,  river  front  ;  and 
they  move  into  two  rooms  on  the  fourth  story  of  a  tene- 
ment house  in  a  back  street.  AVlien  they  are  out  at 
elbows  and  knees  the  thought  of  your  splendid  robe  in 
heaven  will  not  keep  them  warm.  The  minister  may 
preach  a  splendid  sermon  over  your  remains,  and  the 
quartette  may  sing  like  four  angels  in  the  organ  loft,  but 
your  death  luill  he  a  swindle. 


10 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Booh. 


You  had  the  means  to  provide  for  the  comfort  of  your 
household  when  you  left  it  and  you  wickedly  neglected  it. 

Oh,"  says  some  one,  I  have  more  faith  than  you  : 
I  believe  when  I  go  out  of  this  world  the  Lord  will  take 
care  of  my  family."  Yes,  he  will  provide  for  them.  Go 
to  Blackwell's  Island  ;  go  through  all  the  poor-houses  of 
the  country,  and  I  will  show  you  how  often  God  provides 
for  the  neglected  children  of  neglectful  parents — that  is, 
he  provides  for  them  through  public  charity.  As  for 
myself,  I  would  rather  have  the  Lord  provide  for  my 
family  in  a  private  home,  and  through  my  own  industry 
and  paternal  and  conjugal  faithfulness.  "  But,"  says 
some  man,  "  I  mean  in  the  next  ten  or  twenty  years  to 
make  a  great  fortune,  and  so  I  shall  leave  my  family, 
when  I  go  out  of  this  world,  very  comfortable." 

How  do  you  know  you  are  going  to  live  ten  or  twenty 
years  ?  If  we  could  look  up  the  walk  of  the  future  we 
would  see  it  crossed  by  pneumonias,  and  pleurisies,  and 
consumptions,  and  colliding  rail  trains,  and  runaw^ay 
horses,  and  breaking  bridges,  and  funeral  processions. 
Are  you  so  certain  that  you  are  going  to  live  ten  or 
tw^enty  years  that  you  can  warrant  your  household  any 
comfort  after  you  go  away  from  them  ?  Besides  that, 
the  vast  majority  of  men  die  poor.  Two  only  out  of  a 
hundred  succeed  in  business. 

Are  you  certain  that  you  are  going  to  be  one  of  the 
two  ?  There  are  men  who  die  solvent  who  are  insolvent 
before  they  get  under  the  ground,  or  before  their  estate 
is  settled.  How  soon  the  auctioneer's  mallet  can  knock 
the  life  out  of  an  estate  !  A  man  thinks  the  property 
worth  $15,000.  Under  a  forced  sale  it  brings  $7,000. 
The  business  man  takes  advantage  of  the  crisis,  and  he 
compels  the  widow  of  his  deceased  partner  to  sell  out  to 
him  at  a  ruinous  price  or  lose  all  ;  or  the  administrator 
is  ordered  by  the  Surrogate  to  wind  up  the  whole  affair. 
The  estate  was  supposed  at  the  man's  death  to  be  worth 


The  Woodman  s  Hand-Book. 


11 


$20,000,  but  after  the  indebtedness  has  been  met,  and  the 
bills  of  the  doctor  and  the  undertaker  and  the  tombstone 
cutter  have  been  paid,  there  is  nothing  left. 

That  means  the  children  are  to  come  home  from  school 
and  go  to  work.  That  means  the  complete  hardship  of 
the  wife  —  turned  out  with  nothing  but  a  needle  to  fight 
the  great  battle  of  the  world.  Tear  down  the  lambre- 
quins, close  the  piano,  rip  up  the  Axminster,  sell  out  the 
wardrobe,  and  let  the  mother  take  a  child  in  each  hand 
and  trudge  out  into  the  desert  of  the  world.  A  life  in- 
surance would  have  hindered  all  that. 

The  great  indifference  of  many  people  to  this  important 
subject  accounts  for  m.uch  of  the  crinie  and  pauperism  of 
this  day. 

Who  are  these  children  sweeping  the  crossings  with 
broken  brooms  and  begging  of  you  a  penny  as  you  go 
by  ?  Who  are  these  lost  souls  gliding  tinder  the  gas- 
lights in  thin  shawls  ?  Ah  !  they  are  the  victims  of 
want,  and  in  many  of  the  cases  the  forecast  of  parents 
and  grandparents  might  have  prevented  it.  God  only 
knows  how  they  struggled  to  do  right.  They  prayed 
until  the  tears  froze  on  their  cheeks,  they  sewed  on  the 
sack  until  the  breaking  of  the  day,  but  they  could  not 
get  enough  money  to  pay  the  rent ;  they  could  not  get 
enough  money  to  decently  clothe  themselves,  and  one 
day  in  that  wretched  home  the  angel  of  purity  and  the 
angel  of  crime  fotight  a  great  fight  between  the  empty 
bread-tray  and  the  fireless  hearth,  and  the  black-winged 
angel  shrieked  :    ''Ah  I  I  have  won  the  day."' 

Says  some  man  :  "  I  believe  what  you  say  —  it  is  right 
and  Christian,  and  I  mean  some  time  to  attend  to  this  mat- 
ter." My  friend,  you  are  going  to  lose  the  comfort  of  your 
household  in  the  same  way  the  sinner  loses  heaven  —  by 
procrastination.  I  see  all  around  me  the  destitute  and 
suffering  families  of  parents  who  meant  some  day  to  at- 
tend to  this  Christian  duty.    During  the  process  of  ad- 


12 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


journment  the  man  gets  his  feet  wet,  then  comes  a  chill 
and  a  delirium,  and  the  doleful  shake  of  the  doctor's 
head,  and  the  obsequies.  If  there  be  anything  more 
pitiable  than  a  woman,  delicately  brought  up,  and  on  her 
marriage  day,  by  an  indulgent  father,  given  to  a  man  to 
whom  she  is  the  chief  joy  and  pride  of  life  until  the 
moment  of  his  death,  and  then  that  same  woman  going 
out  with  helpless  children  at  her  back  to  struggle  for 
bread  in  a  world  where  brawny  muscle  and  rugged  soul 
are  necessary  —  I  say  if  there  be  anything  more  pitiable 
than  that,  I  don't  know  what  it  is  ;  and  yet  there  are  good 
women  who  are  indifferent  in  regard  to  their  husband's 
duty  in  this  respect,  and  there  are  those  positively  hostile, 
as  though  a  life  insurance  subjected  a  man  to  some  fatality. 
There  is  in  this  city  to-day  a  very  poor  woman  keeping  a 
small  candy  shop,  who  vehemently  opposed  the  insurance 
of  her  husband's  life,  and  when  application  had  been  made 
for  a  policy  of  $10,000  she  frustrated  it.  She  would  never 
have  a  document  in  the  house  that  implied  it  was  pos- 
sible for  her  husband  ever  to  die.  One  day  in  the  quick 
revolution  of  machinery  his  life  was  instantly  dashed 
out.  What  is  the  sequel  f  She  is  with  annoying  tug 
making  the  half  of  a  miserable  living.  Her  two  children 
have  been  taken  away  from  her  in  order  that  they  may  be 
clothed  and  schooled,  and  her  life  is  to  be  a  prolonged  hard- 
ship. Oh,  man !  before  forty-eight  hours  have  passed  away 
appear  at  the  desk  of  one  of  our  great  life  insurance  com- 
panies, have  the  stethoscope  of  the  physcian  put  to  your 
heart  and  lungs,  and  by  the  seal  of  some  honest  company 
decree  that  your  children  shall  not  be  subjected  to  the 
humiliation  of  financial  struggle  in  the  dark  days  of  your 
demise. 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Booh.  13 
What  Eminent  Men  Say  of  Life  BeneMs. 


Hon.  Hugh  McCullough  :  ''I  regret  that  I  did  not 
take  out  a  policy  when  I  was  younger." 

Kepresentative  Randall:  ''I  think  enough  of  life  in- 
surance to  have  my  own  life  protected  for  the  benefit  of 
my  family  for  a  considerable  amount." 

Hon.  William  Springer,  Illinois  :  "  I  am  a  believer  in 
life  insurance,  and  have  carried  a  policy  for  the  past 
nineteen  years." 

Henry  Clews,  Banker  and  Broker,  New  York  :  "  It  is 
not  only  a  financial  provision,  but  it  insures  a  man  a 
longer  lease  of  life.  He  is  relieved  from  anxiety.  Busi- 
ness worry  and  anxiety  kill  many  men.  They  are  what 
kill  most  New  Yorkers." 

Bishop  Huntington,  of  Syracuse  :  "  I  need  to  say 
nothing  more  than  that  my  life  has  been  insured  for 
many  years  past,  with  two  policies." 

Cyrus  W.  Field,  of  New  York,  carried  $250,000  life  in- 
surance, and  regarded  the  fact  as  the  strongest  opinion 
he  could  offer  in  favor  of  the  system. 

T.  DeWitt  Talmage  :  I  more  and  more  believe  in 
life  insurance.  I  carry  about  $60,000  on  my  life.  As 
soon  as  I  married  I  felt  it  a  religious  duty,  through  life 
insurance,  to  protect  my  home  in  case  of  decease." 

Senator  Frye,  of  Maine  :  "  I  carry  on  my  life,  I  think, 
$12,000,  and  should  carry  more  if  I  could  afford  the  ex- 
pense." 

W.  H.  Bulkley,  of  Hartford  :  ''In  my  opinion  life  in- 
surance is  the  most  beneficent  scheme  now  in  vogue 
among  men." 

Benjamin  Franklin  :  "  A  policy  of  life  insurance  is  the 
cheapest  and  safest  mode  of  providing  for  one's  family." 

Dr.  George  C.  Lorimer,  Pastor  Immanuel  Baptist 
Church,  Chicago  :    "  It  would  be  of  no  advantage  to  any- 


14 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


one  to  know  how  much  insurance  I  carry.  It  is  enough 
to  say  that  I  carry  as  much  as  I  can  afford  to  pay  on,  and 
would  recommend  my  fellow-citizens,  especially  preachers, 
to  follow  this  example." 

Bishop  Brewer,  of  Montana  :  "I  have  $1,000  on  my 
life  only.    I  wish  it  were  ten  times  that  amount." 


Life  Insurance  and  Religion, 


Good  people  sometimes  get  very  curious  vagaries.  A 
few  days  ago  a  man  and  his  wife  who  had  become  con- 
verted under  the  preaching  of  Sam  Jones  and  Sam  Small 
came  into  a  well  known  life  insurance  office  to  surrender 
a  policy  that  the  man  had  taken  out.  The  reason,  as 
given,  was  that  they  had  become  Christians  and  de- 
termined to  trust  God's  providence,  and  that  they  were 
convinced  that  life  insurance  was  not  compatible  with 
that  trust.  We  honor  that  man  and  his  wife  for  living 
up  to  principle  when  it  involved  sacrifice,  but  at  the 
same  time  they  were  ver}^  much  mistaken.  Instead  of  re- 
garding life  insurance  as  an  interference  with  providence, 
they  ought  to  have  regarded  it  as  an  instrument  for 
good,  founded  on  principles  acknowledged  to  be  Chris- 
tian, and  perfectly  fitted  to  be  an  instrument  in  the 
hands  of  Providence.  Let  us  examine  this  matter  as 
carefully  as  we  can  from  the  religious  standpoint. 

First.  Life  insurance  was  originated  by  a  clergyman 
for  purely  benevolent  purposes. 

Second.  The  persons  most  frequently  benefited  are 
ihe  widow  and  orphan  —  classes  whom  the  Bible  de- 
clares to  be  objects  of  God's  special  care  —  in  fact  He  is 
<jalled  the  God  of  the  orphan  and  the  wddow. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


15 


Third.  Life  insurance  is  founded  upon  the  idea  of 
present  sacrifice  and  self-denial  in  order  to  procure  future 
benefits  —  a  Christian  idea,  and  a  prominent  one. 

Fourth.  It  teaches  and  aids  men  to  regard  and  pre- 
pare for  the  uncertainty  of  life — a  Christian  dut}^  taught 
on  higher  grounds  by  the  clergyman,  but  just  as  faith- 
fully by  the  insurance  agent. 

Fifth.  Life  insurance  originated  and  is  used  exclu- 
sively among  civilized  nations,  and  is  not  fitted  for  the 
barbarian  or  semi-barbarian.  Even  the  border  life  of 
our  own  country  is  found  to  be  a  less  favorable  field  for 
it,  and  no  one  would  expect  the  "  unspeakable  Turk  "  to 
insure  his  life  for  the  benefit  of  his  numerous  family. 

Sixth.  Christianity  makes  much  of  home  and  invests 
all  its  ties  with  a  peculiar  sacredness.  In  the  home  life 
is  to  be  found  the  sweetest  happiness  of  earth,  and  in  it 
the  coming  man  secures  that  training  and  nurture  which 
we  are  taught  is  the  holiest  duty  of  Christian  parents. 
Life  insurance  does  not  interfere  with  any  tie  or  duty  of 
home,  but  it  seeks  and  tends  to  perpetuate  them  ;  to  pre- 
vent their  being  broken  up  ;  to  provide  for  a  continuance 
of  that  training  and  nurture  even  when  the  bread-winner 
of  the  family  is  no  more. 

Seventh.  The  legislatures  of  nearly  all  our  states  have 
endorsed  life  insurance  as  in  accord  with  the  highest 
principles  of  civilization  and  beneficence  ;  have  protected 
investments  in  it  by  many  special  laws,  introduced  as 
safeguards,  and  to  secure  the  benefits  to  the  parties  for 
whom  they  were  originally  intended. 

Let  us  sum  this  up.  Life  insurance  is  the  creation  of 
Christian  men,  prompted  by  high  Christian  principles  to 
carry  out  the  same  ideas  that  are  exemplified  in  building 
orphan  asylums  and  widows'  homes,  and  in  many  re- 
spects in  a  better  way,  since  it  tends  to  insure  the  con- 
tinuance of  the  home  ;  it  teaches  men  Christian  virtues, 
and  it  aims  chiefly  to  benefit  the  very  class  that  the  Bible 


16 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book, 


declares  to  be  the  special  objects  of  God's  care  ;  it  is  pro- 
tected by  the  legislature  of  Christian  states,  generally 
used  by  the  better  elements  in  every  community,  and  en- 
tirely disregarded  by  the  evil  elements,  the  rowdy,  the 
vicious  and  depraved. 

If,  as  this  man  and  his  wife  assert,  God  undertakes  to 
provide  for  all  the  needs  of  his  servants,  then  here  is  an 
instrument  that  is  fitted  for  that  very  purpose,  which  is 
singularly  free  from  any  antagonism  to  Christian  men  or 
Christian  work. 

Providence  stirred  the  heart  of  that  English  clergy- 
man who  originated  life  insurance  to  do  a  greater  work 
than  he  knew  in  devising  an  effective  means  for  future 
relief  of  suffering  Christians  and  God's  poor,  left  desti- 
tute of  their  natural  protectors. 

Providence  seems  to  have  directed  Christian  minds  to 
the  perfection  of  the  system,  as  a  means  for  such  relief, 
until  it  has  become  wonderfully  effective. 

Providence  undoubtedly  has  used,  and  will  continue  to 
use,  it  as  a  means  by  which  to  provide  for  Christian 
widows  and  orphans.  If  so,  this  good  man  has  made  a 
serious  mistake  and  is  discarding  one  of  the  very  means 
provided  by  Providence  for  the  help  of  his  own  house- 
hold. 

And  so  it  may  happen,  now,  as  of  old,  that  the  men 
who  wage  war  upon  this  institution  prevail  nothing,  be- 
cause they  are  fighting  not  only  against  man  but  against 
the  Providence  of  God. —  Investigator. 


Notes  to  be  Remembered. 


A  life  policy  is  a  sure  indication  of  prudence  and  thrift. 
Many  a  man  has  saved  his  property  to  his  family  by 
life  insurance. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


17 


Life  insurance  has  the  great  advantage  of  providing 
money  for  immediate  use  to  support  a  family  or  cancel 
liabilities. 

Life  insurance  is  the  cheapest  and  safest  way  of  provid- 
ing for  a  family,  and  if  a  man  has  no  other  means  to 
depend  upon,  it  is  a  matter  of  moral  and  religious  obliga- 
tion. 

The  duty  of  life  insurance  is  recognized  in  the  fact 
that  little  sympathy  is  shown  by  the  world  for  the  widow 
and  orphans  of  the  man  who  has  neglected  to  provide  for 
the  contingency  of  death. 

How  many  men,  supposed  to  be  doing  a  prosperous 
business,  die  suddenly  ?  Their  affairs  are  found  mixed 
up,  heavy  debts  have  been  contracted,  greedy  creditors 
step  in,  and  all  go  to  satisfy  their  claims.  The  family  is 
scattered.  They  might  have  been  provided  for  by  life 
insurance  ;  but  the  wife  opposed  —  she  did  not  consider 
it  a  paying  investment.  The  property  already  accumu- 
lated was  enough.  Too  late  the  truth  dawned  upon  her. 
She  has  no  one  but  herself  to  blame,  and  in  this  knowl- 
edge there  is  the  keenest  agony. 

In  this  age  of  enlightenment  there  are  few  women  who 
turn  pale  at  the  breaking  of  a  mirror,  or  have  a  presenti- 
ment of  evil  when  a  dog  howls  beneath  their  window, 
and  yet  there  are  many  who  cherish  as  foolish  supersti- 
tions. They  are  afraid  to  have  their  husbands  insure  — 
it  seems  so  much  like  inviting  death.  The  mere  matter 
of  making  provision  for  one's  family  does  not  hasten 
the  event,  which,  sooner  or  later,  comes  to  all  men.  The 
time  and  place  for  the  husband's  death  is  appointed  ;  by 
setting  his  house  in  order,  and  so  regulating  his  affairs 
that  the  sweet  peace  maj^  not  be  broken,  he  does  not 
change  the  infinite  laws  or  hasten  the  time  one  jot. 

The  following  is  one  of  the  well  authenticated  tables  in 
use  among  London  assurance  companies,  showing  the 
average  length  of  life  at  various  ages.    This  table  is  th^ 


18 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


result  of  careful  carculation,  and  seldom  proves  mislead- 
ing. Of  course  sudden  and  premature  deaths,  as  well  as 
lives  unusually  extended,  occasionally  occur  ;  but  this  is 
a  table  of  the  average  expectancy  of  life  of  an  ordinary 
man  or  woman  : 


Age. 

1. 
10. 
20. 
30. 
40. 


More  years  to  live. 

  39 

  51 

  41 

  34 

 28 


Age. 
50. 


70. 
80. 


More  years  to  live. 

  21 

 14 

  9 

  4 


Men  Who  Have  Their  Lives  Insured  for 
Large  Amounts. 


From  the  New  York  Sun. 

Few  people  have  any  idea  of  the  enormous  amount  of 
money  that  is  nowadays  paid  into  insurance  companies 
merely  for  investment  purposes.  The  great  life  insurance 
companies  to-day  have  become  more  than  life  insurance 
companies  ;  they  are  great  institutions  into  which  money 
can  be  placed  and  by  a  judicious  investment  by  officers 
and  men  who  devote  their  lives  to  that  kind  of  work  it 
often  doubles  in  the  ten  or  twenty  years  that  the  investor 
pays  in. 

Life  insurance  nowada3^s  is  patronized  by  the  wealthiest 
men  of  the  country,  and  patronized  to  an  extent  that 
seems  almost  incredible.  There  is  one  man,  John  Wan- 
amaker,  who  carries  $1,505,000  on  his  life,  and  he  pays 
in  premiums  every  year  more  than  $50,000.  Nearly  all 
of  his  insurance  is  of  the  character  that  will  enable  liim 
to  draw  the  full  amount  of  his  insurance  in  his  lifetime. 

Of  the  prominent  men  of  New  York  City  who  are  ex- 
tensive patrons  of  life  insurance,  Mr.  Chaun(?ey  M.  De- 
pew  is  the  largest.    He  is  insured  in  many  companies, 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


19 


and  carries  a  total  insurance  of  about  $500,000.  On 
some  of  it  he  p^iys  as  low  as  $40  a  thousand  a  year,  but 
on  others  he  pays  as  high  as  $G0  a  thousand.  His  life 
insurance  annually  costs  him  more  than  the  average 
bank  president  gets  in  salary.  Tlie  Lorillards,  Pierre, 
his  two  sons  and  his  two  daughters,  carry,  all  told,  about 
$710,000  insurance  on  their  lives.  Tlie  sons  and  daught- 
ers are  insured  for  $100,000  each,  while  Mr.  Lorillard 
himself  carries  $310,000  insurance.  Theodore  A.  Have- 
meyer  and  four  members  of  his  family  carry  an  amount 
aggregating  more  than  $500,000. 

The  individual  carrying  on  his  own  life  the  amount 
next  to  that  carried  by  Mr.  Depew  is  Mr.  James  R.  Pitcher. 
Mr.  Pitcher's  insurance  aggregates  $465,000,  and  if  he 
lives  and  pays  premiums  at  the  rate  that  he  is  paying 
them  now  for  the  full  term  of  his  insurance,  he  will  be 
able  to  draw  in  the  neighborhood  of  $500,000.  George 
K.  Henderson,  another  wealthy  citizen,  has  his  life  in- 
sured for  $410,000,  and  his,  too,  is  most  of  it  on  the  en- 
dowment plan,  and  he  doesn't  have  to  die  to  win.  Of  the 
men  who  carry  more  than  $300,000  on  their  lives,  the 
most  prominent  in  New  York  is  Mr.  J.  A.  Bostwick.  His 
insurance  foots  up  $335,000. 

The  list  of  people  who  carr}^  between  $200,000  and 
$300,000  insurance  in  New  York  City  is  very  large. 
Among  the  most  prominent  names  are  those  of  Mr.  T.  B. 
Armstrong,  whose  insurance  is  $232,000  ;  Mr.  Alexander 
Barrett,  who  carries  $200,000  ;  Mr.  William  P.  Clyde,  the 
steamship  man,  who  carries  $200,000  ;  Isidor  Cohnfeld, 
$290,000;  John  L.  Cunningham,  $220,000;  Anderson 
Fowler,  $200,000  ;  Edward  A.  Mc Alpine,  the  tobacco 
man,  $200,000  ;  William  Fellows  Morgan,  $200,000  ;  I. 
B.  Newcome,  $250,000  ;  J.  C.  Osgood,  $260,000  :  F.  E. 
Eoberts,  $200,000  ;  C.  H.  Yenner,  $250,000 

Of  the  men  who  carry  lesser  amounts  than  these,  whose 
names  are,  some  of  them,  mucli  better  known,  there  is 


20 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


Supreme  Court  Justice  Morgan  J.  O'Brien,  who  is  insured 
for  $50,000  ;  ex-Secretary  Charles  S.  Fairchild,  who  is 
insured  for  $100,000  ;  Mr.  J.  W.  Alexander,  the  vice- 
president  of  the  Equitable,  who  carries  $140,000  on  his 
life,  and  William  J.  Arkell,  the  publisher  of  Judge,  in- 
sured for  over  $50,000.  Samuel  Borrowe,  who  is  also 
connected  with  the  Equitable  Insurance  Company,  has 
insurance  amounting  to  $173,370.  James  B.  Colgate  is 
insured  for  $106,000.  Judge  Dittenhoefer  is  insured  for 
over  $100,000,  and  Henry  E.  Dixey,  the  actor,  carries 
something  more  than  $50,000.  Mr.  A.  Dolge,  of  Dolge- 
ville,  who  insists  on  insuring  the  lives  of  all  of  his  em- 
ployes, has  on  his  own  life  $160,000,  and  on  the  lives  of 
his  employes  about  $163,000. 

E.  M.  Field,  the  one  who  failed  some  years  ago,  and  is 
supposed  to  be  penniless,  pays  premiums  on  insurance 
that  at  the  end  of  twenty  years  from  the  time  he  began 
paying  may  net  him  $150,000.  Duncan  R.  Harris  has 
insurance  to  the  amount  of  $100,000  ;  F.  C.  and  H.  B. 
Hollands,  bankers,  have  together  about  $200,000  insur- 
ance ;  J.  H.  Haverly  has  $120,000  ;  John  W.  Lovell,  the' 
publisher,  has  $160,000  ;  Dr.  Charles  McBurney,  the  sur- 
geon, is  almost  as  well  insured. 

Of  the  presidents  of  the  three  biggest  life  insurance 
companies  in  this  city,  John  A.  McCall,  of  the  New  York, 
carries  the  heaviest  insurance  on  his  life  ;  it  aggregates 
$170,000.  Henry  B.  Hyde,  of  the  Equitable,  is  not  far 
behind  him  ;  he  has  $165,000  on  his  life.  Richard  A. 
McCurdy,  of  the  Mutual,  is  insured  for  $106,000. 

Ex-Secretary  William  C.  Whitney  has  always  been  a 
prominent  patron  of  life  insurance,  and  at  present  car- 
ries something  more  than  $100,000.  Mr.  S.  V.  White  is 
another  who  has  been  interested  in  life  insurance  from 
the  beginning,  and  his  policies  now  amount  to  about 
$175,000.  Spencer  and  Wayland  Trask,  brokers,  carry 
between  them  about  $140,000. 


The  Woodman's  Hand- Book. 


21 


While  Mr.  Depew  devotes  so  much  of  his  money  to 
paying  premiums  on  life  insurance,  the  Yanderbilts,  with 
whom  he  is  more  closely  associated  than  anybody  else, 
haven't  yet  taken  to  that  kind  of  investment  to  any  great 
extent.  So  far  as  could  be  learned  from  the  various 
companies,  the  total  insurance  of  all  the  members  of  tlie 
Vanderbilt  family  amounts  to  a  little  over  $100,000. 

In  Brooklyn  the  man  who  is  most  heavily  insured  is 
Mr.  P.  B.  Armstrong,  Avho  carries  at  the  present  time 
about  $225,000.  Edward  B.  Bartlett,  who  died  recently 
and  left  his  business  in  such  a  bad  condition,  was  in- 
sured for  more  than  $150,000.  The  Rev.  T.  De  Witt 
Talmage,  who  has  learned  the  value  of  insurance  through 
his  various  experiences  with  fire,  has  his  life  insured  for 
more  than  $60,000.  This  is  exclusive  of  the  amount  that 
Russell  Sage  carries  on  Talmage's  life  to  insure  the  pay- 
ment of  a  loan  which  he  made  on  the  Tabernacle,  burned 
recently.  Another  prominent  Brooklynite  Avho  carries  a 
large  insurance  is  Frederick  Loeser. 

William  Barnes,  Jr.,  the  young  man  not  afraid  of  his 
shadow,  has  his  life  insured  for  more  than  $100,000,  and 
therefore  has  no  reason  to  be  afraid  of  his  shadow. 
Gorton  W.  Allen,  who  was  the  jSTcav  York  State  Com- 
missioner at  the  World's  Fair,  and  who  lives  at  Auburn, 
carries  $150,000  insurance.  Franklin  D.  Locke,  the  anti- 
snap  leader  of  Western  New  York,  also  indulges  in 
$100,000  insurance.  Matt  Arnot,  the  Elraira  millionaire, 
who  is  said  to  be  one  of  the  most  liberal  campaign  con- 
tributors in  the  whole  state,  or  the  whole  United  States, 
for  that  matter,  has  a  $100,000  policy. 

One  hundred  thousand  dollars,  by  the  way,  is  the 
largest  amount  that  any  insurance  company  in  the  east 
will  carry  on  the  life  of  one  man,  and  those  who  are  in- 
sured for  amounts  greater  than  this  have  their  insurance 
in  several  companies. 


22 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


Smilh  M.  Weed,  the  Plattsburg  statesman,  patronizes 
the  insurance  companies  to  the  extent  of  $200,000.  A. 
G.  Yates,  the  wealthy  lumber  dealer  of  Rochester,  and 
the  warm  friend  of  Mr.  H.  H.  Warner,  of  that  town,  has 
his  life  insured  for  $243,000,  following  the  advice  of  Mr. 
Warner,  who  is  himself  insured  for  $200,000.  Herbert 
C.  Pell,  of  Tuxedo,  carries  $212,000  on  his  life.  Edward 
Lauterbach,  of  the  firm  of  Hoadley,  Lauterbach  <k  John- 
son, is  insured  for  about  $125,000. 

It  is  not  only  in  the  east  that  men  of  great  wealth  have 
resorted  to  this  means  to  invest  their  money  and  get 
thereby  a  larger  rate  of  interest  than  can  be  had  in  most 
ordinary  investments.  From  Maine  to  California  and 
from  Canada  to  Florida  there  is  hardly  a  city  of  any  im- 
portance whatever  that  does  not  contain  at  least  one  very 
large  patronizer  of  life  insurance,  and  the  number  who 
carry  amounts  varying  from  $50,000  to  $100,000  is  pretty 
large.  In  California  there  are  upward  of  twenty  men 
who  carry  as  much  as  $100,000  on  their  lives,  besides 
several  women.  Am.ong  the  most  prominent  men  there 
who  are  insured  are  Stephen  White,  M.  J.  D.  Young, 
AVilliam  H.  Crocker,  Colonel  C.  F.  Crocker,  and  Timothy 
Hopkins.  The  Chamberlins,  of  Denver,  have  put  away 
in  life  insurance  something  like  $400,000.  Senator  AVol- 
cott,  of  Colorado,  protects  himself  with  more  than  $150,000. 

There  are  several  United  States  Senators  who  carry  a 
very  large  insurance  on  their  lives.  Most  prominent 
among  them  is  John  R.  McPherson,  who  doesn't  invest 
all  his  money  in  sugar  stock.  He  carries  an  even  $300,- 
000.  His  friend,  Franz  0.  Matthieson,  who  was  the  pro- 
prietor of  Matthieson  &  Weicher's  sugar  refinery  before 
that  refinery  went  into  the  sugar  trust,  and  who  is  now 
one  of  the  prominent  men  in  the  sugar  trust,  is  insured 
for  about  $385,000.  United  States  Senator  Calvin  S. 
Brice  carries  a  total  of  about  $250,000,  but  his  insurance 
is  mostly  all  the  old  style  or  straight  life  insurance. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


23 


Senator  Eustis,  who  is  now  an  ambassador,  has  $100,000 
insurance.  Of  other  men  who  live  in  Washington,  al- 
thougli  it  is  not  their  home,  and  who  carry  large  insur- 
ance, there  are  Samuel  M.  Bryan,  $205,000,  and  T.  E. 
AVagerman,  $250,000.  United  States  Senator  John  Sher- 
man carries  about  $300,000  insurance  on  his  life.  Un- 
like Mr.  Brice,  Mr.  Sherman  invested  in  endowment 
insurance. 

Chicago  doesn't  contain  so  many  men  who  invest  their 
money  in  life  insurance  as  New  York.  The  man  who 
carries  the  largest  insuranje  out  there  is  M.  T. 
Green,  who  is  insured  for  $362,000.  Only  one  of  the 
Armours  is  insured,  and  he  carries  only  $100,000.  J.  Q,. 
Adams  is  insured  for  $218,000.  N.  K.  Fairbank,  the  lard 
man,  carries  $100,000  on  his  life.  Mr.  Higginbotham, 
who  had  the  World's  Fair  on  his  shoulders,  has  $200,000, 
and  James,  L.  Houghteling,  his  friend,  carries  $155,000. 
George  M.  Pullman,  the  palace-car  man,  wealthy  as  he 
is,  only  carries  $100,000. 

Neither  Grover  Cleveland  nor  Benjamin  Harrison  has 
his  life  insured  for  any  large  amount.  Each  carries 
small  policies,  but  Baby  McKee's  father  has  protected 
himself  for  the  benefit  of  the  baby  with  a  $75,000  policy.- 

Indiana,  like  Illinois,  hasn't  proven  itself  to  be  a  tre- 
mendous patron  of  life  insurance,  although  the  number 
of  small  policy-holders  is  very  large.  The  Studebakers, 
of  South  Bend,  carry  the  largest  amount  of  insurance. 
They  aggregate  about  $450,000. 

Colonel  James  E.  Pepper,  of  Lexington,  Ky.,  who  is 
interested  in  the  Breckinridge  fight,  has  his  life  insured 
for  $125,000,  and  from  all  the  stories  that  have  been 
coming  from  Kentucky  recently,  it  would  appear  that  it 
is  a  mighty  good  precaution  for  Mr.  Pepper.  It  is  said 
that  since  Colonel  Breckinridge  announced  his  intention 
of  running  again  for  Congress  there  have  been  a  very 
large  number  of  applications  for  life  insurance  in  large 


24 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


amounts  in  Kentucky,  and  if  things  go  on  as  they  are 
going  now,  it  looks  as  if  some  of  the  companies  might 
be  hit  hard  before  the  campaign  is  over.  Life  insurance 
companies  have  to  pay  when  you  get  shot  just  the  same 
as  if  you  die  a  natural  death. 

The  Howards,  of  New  Orleans,  carry  between  them 
about  $400,000  insurance  on  their  lives.  They  are  among 
the  largest  policy-holders  in  the  south.  The  largest 
single  policy-holder  in  the  south  is  J.  S.  Carr,  of  Dur- 
ham, N.  C,  who  carries  $545,500  on  his  life.  He  carries 
on  the  lives  of  members  of  his  family  about  $200,000 
more.  Ex-Governor  Holt,  of  North  Carolina,  carries 
only  $57,452  on  his  life,  but  he  carries  upward  of  $500,- 
000  on  the  lives  of  members  of  his  family,  and  Lawrence 
S.  Holt,  a  relative  of  his,  who  resides  in  Burlington,  is 
insured  for  $172,000.  Baltimore's  heaviest  patron  of  life 
insurance  is  Bernard  M.  Baker,  who  carries  nearly  half 
a  million  of  dollars. 

Boston  has  always  been  a  good  j)atron  of  life  insur- 
ance. The  man  who  carries  the  heaviest  insurance  there 
is  Mr.  J.  R.  Whipple,  who  pays  premiums  on  more  than 
$600,000  on  his  own  life.  There  are  two  men  who  are 
insured  for  more  than  $500,000  —  Mr.  E.  H.  Abbott  and 
Mr;  George  Samuel  C.  Lawrence.  More  than  a  dozen 
men  are  insured  each  for  more  than  $200,000.  Among 
them  are  C.  H.  Taylor,  Charles  C.  Pulsifer,  Albert  A. 
Pope,  and  R.  G.  Chase.  George  D.  Robinson,  once  gov- 
ernor of  the  state,  but  better  known  as  the  lawyer  who 
defended  Miss  Lizzie  Borden  so  ably  and  secured  her  ac- 
quittal, has  his  life  insured  for  $50,000.  One  of  the 
Borden  famil}^  also  has  her  life  insured  for  $50,000.  The 
patent  medicine  business  enables  C.  I.  Hood,  of  Lowell, 
to  carry  $285,000  insurance. 

General  Russell  A.  Alger,  who  had  such  a  bad  attack 
of  the  presidential  bee  in  1892,  carries  now  $148,000  on 
his  life.    He  took  most  of  it  out  when  he  got  back  from 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


25 


the  war  and  went  into  politics,  and  he  pays  premiums  on 
the  greater  part  of  it  at  a  rate  of  about  $50  on  each 
thousand.  Mayor  Pingree,  who  also  lives  in  Detroit,  has 
his  life  insured  for  $140,000,  and  Frank  C.  Pingree,  one 
of  his  relatives,  carries  $72,000  insurance.  These  are 
the  most  prominent  of  the  one  hundred  and  odd  names 
from  Michigan  cities. 

The  best  patron  of  life  insurance  in  Minnesota  is  John 
McKinley,  of  Duluth.  He  pays  on  $300,000  worth  of 
policies.  Ex-Governor  John  S.  Pillsbury,  of  Minneapolis, 
carries  $150,000,  and  his  brother  Charles  $100,000.  W. 
C.  Washburn,  Avho  is  another  flour  man,  has  his  life  in- 
sured for  $125,000.  Governor  Merriman,  interested  in 
the  same  business,  but  living  in  St.  Paul,  carries  $102,- 
000.  J.  J.  Hill,  the  railroad  king  of  the  northwest,  is 
insured  for  $100,000. 

The  best  patron  of  life  insurance  in  Kansas  City  is 
Willard  E.  Pinner  ;  his  life  is  insured  for  $373,000.  In 
St.  Louis  John  W.  Kaufman  has  $325,000  insurance. 
John  M,  Thurston,  who  hails  from  Omaha,  and  who  was 
prominent  in  the  Hawaiian  troubles,  was  wise  enougli 
before  he  went  to  Hawaii  to  take  out  a  policy  of  $100,- 
000  on  his  life  in  favor  of  his  wife. 

Thomas  A.  Edison,  the  inventor,  has  his  life  insured 
for  $130,000.  Frank  A.  McGowan,  who  Avas  the  mayor 
of  Trenton,  N.  J.,  and  Avho  is  a  considerable  power  in 
politics  there  to-day,  has  $250,000  on  his  life.  Chris. 
Magee,  the  thorn  in  the  side  of  United  States  Senator 
Quay,  spends  a  great  deal  of  the  profits  of  his  business 
in  life  insurance.  At  last  accounts  his  policies  footed  up 
$375,000. 

During  the  Homestead  strikes,  when  Bergman,  the 
anarchist,  shot  H.  C.  Frick,  of  the  Carnegie  company, 
the  life  insurance  companies  stood  to  lose  $310,000  in  a 
lump,  but  Mr.  Frick  got  well.  Notwithstanding  his  nar- 
row escape,  he  has  not  endeavored  to  increase  his  insur- 


26 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


ance  at  all.  The  recent  strikes  and  the  riots  and  violence 
practiced  in  Pennsylvania  have  made  some  companies 
rather  chary  about  the  character  of  the  risks  that  they 
are  taking  out  there.  Mine  owners  and  iron-mill  owners 
are  not  considered  the  very  best  risks.  Of  the  iron  men 
who  are  already  insured  in  Pittsburg,  W.  G.  Friday  car- 
ries $300,000.  Henry  Phipps,  of  the  Carnegie  company, 
has  $113,000.  Senator  Don  Cameron,  of  Pennsylvania, 
carries  $200,000  insurance  on  his  life,  and  E.  P.  Wilber, 
president  of  the  Lehigh  Valley  Railroad  company,  who 
lives  in  Bethlehem,  has  just  half  that  amount. 

General  E.  Bird  Grubb,  who  says  he  lives  in  Jersey 
when  he  wants  to  run  for  gov'ernor  of  that  state,  and  in 
Philadelphia  when  he  isn't  looking  for  political  favors 
over  there,  has  an  insurance  of  $100,000  on  his  life. 
George  Boldt,  who  is  now  running  the  AValdorf  Hotel  in 
New  York  City,  but  used  to  be  a  great  Philadelphia  man, 
has  $232,000  worth  of  policies.  The  family  that  carries 
the  largest  insurance  in  Pennsylvania  is  the  Disston 
family.  There  are  five  members  of  it  insured,  and  their 
insurance  aggregates  $1,510,000.  Two  of  them  carry 
$600,000  each.  This  aggregate  is  larger  than  the  amount 
on  the  life  of  John  Wanamaker,  but,  including  the 
other  two  Wanamakers  in  Philadelphia,  Mr.  Wanamak- 
er's  insurance  would  foot  up  to  $1,750,000. 

John  Hauck,  of  Cincinnati,  has  $250,000  on  his  life. 
M.  E.  Ingalls,  of  the  same  city,  has  $285,000,  and  the 
Stix  family  —  Henry,  Joseph,  Nathan,  and  William  com- 
bined—have $350,000. 

The  AVick  family,  in  Youngstown,  Ohio,  carry  a  total 
of  $435,000,  nearly  all  of  which  is  investment  insurance. 
George  A.  Dohman,  who  belongs  to  more  societies  than 
any  man  in  Pennsylvania,  has,  besides  his  various  society 
insurances,  $89,000  in  life  insurance.  That  is  the  largest 
amount  carried  by  any  man  in  Wilkesbarre.  In  Spring 
Forge,  Penn.,  P.  H.  Glatfelter  has  $453,000,  and  W.  H. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


27 


Glatfelter  $220,000.  They  are  among  the  best  patrons  in 
that  part  of  the  state. 

Governor  Ladd,  of  Rhode  Island,  had  his  life  insured 
for  $195,000.  United  States  Senator  Camden,  of  Park- 
ersburg,  AV.  A^a.,  carries  $75,000  on  his  life.  Milwaukee 
has  two  $500,000  men,  E.  H.  Abbott  and  James  L.  Gates. 

To-day  there  are  in  the  United  States  7,419,856  persons 
holding  life  insurance  policies.  If  they  all  died  to-mor- 
row the  companies  would  have  to  pay  $5,280,585,718. 
But  5,679,328  of  these  persons  are  insured  in  industrial 
companies.  If  the  rest,  1,740,528,  only  should  die,  the 
companies  w^ould  have  to  pay  $4,624,838,670. 


Comparative  Cost  of  Management 


The  most  interesting  statistics  to  the  life  insurance 
agent  is  undoubtedly  the  expense  ratio  of  the  various 
companies  operating  in  the  field. 

While  the  expense  charge  of  a  level  premium  policy  is 
an  unknown  quantity,  the  expense  element  of  a  flexible 
premium  company  is  always  limited  in  the  policy  con- 
tract, but  this  limit  varies  so  much  with  the  different  com- 
panies, and  often  deviates  to  such  an  extent  from  the 
actual  amount  used  for  management,  that  it  would  be  an 
injustice  to  consider  the  limit  as  the  amount  actually  ex- 
pended for  management,  for  which  reason  the  following 
table  of  cost  and  management  to  each  one  thousand  dol- 
lars of  insurance  in  force  of  the  companies  mentioned 
is  given,  with  a  comparison  to  the  cost  for  management 
on  each  one  thousand  in  the  leading  level  premium  com- 
panies : 


28 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


FLEXIBLE  PREMIUM  COMPANIES. 


Northwestern  Masonic  Aid  Association..   

Maine  Benefit  Association  

Provincial  Provident  Institution  

Covenant  Mutual  Benefit  Association  

Chicago  Guaranty  Fund  Life  Society. .  .•  

Hartford  Life  and  Annuity  Insurance  Company. 

Pranlilin  Life  Association  

Bay  State  Beneficiary  Association  

Massachusetts  Benefit  Association  

Mutual  Reserve  Fund  Life  Association  

Northwestern  Life  Association  

Des  Moines  Life  Association   

*  Provident  Savings  Life  Assurance  Society  

*  National  Life  Association  

United  Life  Insurance  Association   

*  Security  Mutual  Life  Association  

*  National  Life  Maturity  Insurance  Company. . . 

*  Fidelity  Mutual  Life  Association  

t  Industrial  Benefit  Association  

i  Connecticut  Indemnity  Association  


LEVEL  PREMIUM  COMPANIES. 


Canada  Life  Assurance  Company  

Connecticut  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company.  . 

Mutual  Benefit  Life  Insurance  Company  

Northwestern  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company. . 

.x^tna  Life  Insurance  Company   

Traveler's  Life  Insurance  Company  

Equitable  Life  Assurance  Society  

Penn  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company  

Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company  

Germania  Life  Insurance  Company   

Manhattan  Life  Insurance  Company  

New  York  Life  Insurance  Company  

Home  Life  Insurance  Company  

Union  Central  Life  Insurance  Company  

Union  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company  

Michigan  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company  

Phoenix  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company  

t  John  Hancock  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company 

t  Prudential  Insurance  Company  

t  Metropolitan  Life  Insurance  Company  


*Does  an  investment  insurance  business  in  addition  to  straight  life. 

t  Industrial  business.  X  Investment  and  industrial  business. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


29 


Death  Rate  of  Nations. 


The  following  table  shows  the  annual  rate  of  mortality 
per  1,000  in  Great  Britain,  England,  and  France,  includ- 
ing the  deaths  of  soldiers  at  home  and  abroad.  —  Insur- 
ance Cyclopdsdia,  Vol.  V.,  p.  542  : 


Years. 

Great 
Britain. 

England 
AND  Wales. 

France. 

1857 

21.7 

21.8 

23.8 

1858 

23.0 

23.2 

24.1 

1859 

22.2 

22.4 

27.0 

1860 

21.4 

21.3 

21.4 

1861 

21.5 

21.6 

23.2 

1862 

21.5 

21.5 

21.7 

1863 

23.0 

23.0 

22.5 

1864  . 

23.8 

23.8 

22.8 

1865 

23.3 

23.4 

24.3 

1866 

23.5 

23.6 

23.3 

1867 

22.0 

22.0 

22.7 

1868 

22.1 

22.2 

24.0 

1869 

22.8 

22  6 

23.5 

1870 

22.8 

22.9 

28.3 

1871 

22.6 

22.6 

Grand  Averag-e. . 

22.4 

22.5 

23.7 

*Less40  %  

13.5 

13.5 

14.2 

*  Fully  40  per  cent  of  all  who  are  born  die  before  they  are  25  years  of  age. 


Insured  for  $^30,000  and  Over. 


C.  H.  Venner,  New  York  City   $250,000 

J.  B.  Newcombe,  New  York  City   250,000 

Thoraas  Y.  England,  Philadelphia,  Penn.   250,000 

G.  G.  Green,  Philadelphia,  Penn   250,000 

Dr.  William  Pepper,  Philadelphia,  Penn   250,000 

J.  V.  Farwell,  Chicago,  111   250,000 

W.  T.  Green,  Chicago,  111   250,000 

Keith  Edison,  Chicago,  111    260,000 

J.  C.  Osgood,  New  York  City   260,000 


30  The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 

Franz  Matthiessn,  New  York  City   270,000 

D.  K.  Mills,  Philadelphia,  Penn   270,000 

Isidor  Confield,  New  York  City   290,000 

E.  M.  Hukell,  Pittsburg,  Penn   300,000 

H.  H.  Warner,  Rochester,  N.  Y   800,000 

C.  H.  Call,  Marquette,  Mich   800,000 

J.  L.  Gates,  Milwaukee,  Wis     800,000 

Marshall  A.  Phillips,  Philadelphia,  Penn   800,000 

R  G.  Peters,  Eastlake,  Mich   801,815 

J.  S.  Carr,  Durham,  N.  C   810,000 

P.  Lorillard,  New  York  City   810,000 

H.  R.  Shoch,  Philadelphia,  Penn   319,000 

J.  A.  Bostwick,  New  York  City   885,000 

James  R.  Pitcher,  New  York  City   850,000 

Willard  E.  Winner,  Kansas  City,  Mo   878,000 

Mrs.  George  Hearst,  San  Francisco,  Cal   400,000 

C.  A.  Coffin,  Boston,  Mass   400,000 

Dr.  R.  C.  Flower,  Boston,  Mass   400,000 

George  K.  Anderson,  New  York  City   410,000 

P.  H.  Glatfelter,  Spring  Forge,  Penn   465,000 

Chauncey  M.  Depew,  New  York  City   500,000 

Theo.  A.  Havemeyer,  New  York  City   600,000 

E.  H.  Abbott,  Boston,  Mass   500,000 

J.  R.  Whipple,  Boston,  Mass   500.000 

Edwin  Kuth,  Chicago,  111   500,000 

George  Gooderham,  Toronto,  Ont   500,000 

W.  W.  Gibbs,  Philadelphia,  Penn   500,000 

J.  B.  Stetson,  Philadelphia,  Penn   515.000 

Hon.  John  Wanamaker,  Philadelphia,  Penn    1,500  000 


niie 


ini§iiiiraini(se, 


D.  C.  ZiNK,  Head  Banker. 


The  Philosophy  of  It. 


JJ  Yl  UMAN  experience  in  all  times 
and  places  has  demonstrated 
the  fact  that  he  who  attempts 
to  disturb  the  fixed  habits  and  com- 
mon belief  of  a  people  by  introduc- 
ing new  ideas  or  changes  challenges 
opposition  and  persecution  harmon- 
izing with  the  magnitude  of  the  in- 
novation in  question.  This  fact  is  the  result  of  an  innate 
propensity  in  man,  an  intolerance  of  change,  which  im- 
pels him  to  punish  the  innovator  whose  ideas  clash  with 
his  repose  or  self-interest.  And  what  is  true  of  man  is 
equally  true  of  society.  Whether  this  spirit  of  con- 
servalfism,  or  rather  inertia,  tends  to  the  good  or  ill  of 
mankind  we  will  not  discuss.  It  is  enough  to  know  that 
this  intolerance  of  change,  or  propensity  to  resent  change, 
exists,  and  that  it  is  common  to  all  peoples,  to  all  times, 
and  under  all  systems  of  religion,  philosophy,  and  gov- 
ernment. 

The  foregoing  observations  lead  up  to  the  so-called 
persecution  now  waged  against  that  form  of  co-opera- 
tion represented  by  the  system  of  fraternal  insurance. 
Evolved,  as  it  was,  out  of  the  exigencies  of  the  times,  to 
meet  a  condition  of  things  hitherto  unprovided  for, 
the  progress  of  this  system  has  been  one  of  evolution. 
Evolution,  as  the  reader  well  knows,  does  not  involve 
revolution.  It  goes  straight  ahead.  Its  sign  is  supposed 
to  be  a  straight  line,  not  a  circle.  It  is  a  creation  to 
meet  conditions  and  questions  relating  to  the  economic 
structure  of  society  as  embodied  in  its  concrete  entity. 


34 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


It,  therefore,  is  an  innovation,  and,  as  such,  is  destined 
to  pass  through  the  crucial  test  of  intolerance  born  of 
ignorance,  misrepresentation  as  set  forth  by  unscrupu- 
lous representatives  within,  and  interested  traducers  with- 
out, its  folds,  the  natural  mutability  of  all  institutions  of 
human  creation,  and  the  damnable  opposition  of  sine- 
cures who  regard  everything  as  a  hollow  pretense  which 
does  not  pay  tribute  to  their  treasuries.  We  therefore 
submit  a  few  instances  by  way  of  analogy,  and  believe 
that  the  thoughtful  reader  wiW  not  only  be  able  to  dis- 
cern the  true  inwardness  of  the  present  agitation  against 
a  comparatively  new  system,  but  will  be  able  to  arrive  at 
a  correct  conclusion  as  well. 

Life  insurance  in  its  incipient  stages  was  greeted  with 
ridicule  and  opposition  of  the  most  positive  character. 
Evolved  in  1671,  it  was  at  the  outstart  the  subject  of 
much  controversy.  Laws  inhibiting  its  operation  were 
passed,  and  it  was  declared  unlawful  in  France  to  lay  a 
wager  on  the  life  of  the  Pope,  Emperor,  King,  dukes, 
princes,  bishops,  lords,  or  persons."  The  general  belief 
was  that  life  insurance  was  "  nothing  more  than  a  wicked 
game  of  chance,  w4th  individuals  as  the  stakes."  How 
is  it  to-day  ?  Life  insurance  is  the  greatest  financial  sys- 
tem of  the  world.  It  outvies  banks  and  governments. 
Hundreds  of  millions  of  dollars  are  held  by  individual 
corporations.  It  is  now  regarded  as  an  indication  of 
prudence  for  a  man  to  carry  a  reasonable  amount  of  in- 
surance. The  v/icked  game  of  chance"  of  yesterday 
has  become  the  necessity  of  to-day.  It  furnishes  the 
sinews  of  war  to  governments,  corporations,  and  trusts. 
It  is  courted  on  all  sides,  and  it  is  yet  in  its  early  stages. 

But,  the  reader  may  say,  if  the  above  is  a  true  resume 
of  facts,  wherein  lies  the  necessity  of  concerted  co-opera- 
tive action  ?  We  will  explain.  These  institutions  have 
diverged  from  the  paths  in  which  they  originally  started. 
The  "  wicked  game  of  chance,"  whose  beneficent  features 


The  M^oodman's  Hand-Book, 


35 


are  recognized  by  all,  has  been  relegated  to  the  back- 
ground. The  banking  and  investment  features  have 
been  so  interwoven  with  it  that  one  is  in  a  maze  of  doubt 
and  bewilderment  when  he  endeavors  to  fathom  its  in- 
tricacies. Monopolies  and  trusts  have  fastened  their 
poisonous  fangs  upon  its  exponents  so  that  now  they  are 
pliant  tools  to  do  their  bidding.  This  is  why  the  rank 
and  file  of  humanity  is  subverting  its  interests  when  it 
contributes  to  the  coffers  of  these  institutions. 

Reference  to  official  reports  shows  that  two  companies 
alone — the  Mutual  Life  and  the  New  York  Life  —  repre- 
sent nearly  $100,000,000  in  railroad  securities.  The 
Equitable  Life  swells  this  with  $40,000,000  more  of  like 
securities.  What  is  the  lesson  of  this  ?  These  vast 
trusts  were  organized  without  a  dollar  of  capital ;  there 
never  was  a  dollar  of  personal  responsibility,  and  there 
is  not  a  dollar  of  responsibility  connected  with  them  to- 
day. They  Avere  organized  wholly  and  solely  in  the  in- 
terests of  philanthropy  —  to  protect  the  home  and  loved 
ones.  And  jet  —  mark  this  statement  —  these  institu- 
tions have  so  manipulated  matters  through  legislatures 
and  otherwise  that  they  practically  own  and  control  these 
vast  accumulations.  The  policy-holders  have  no  rights 
which  they  are  bound  to  respect. 

The  above  are  the  conditions  which  called  forth  the 
present  system,  which  has  been  aptly  termed  fraternal- 
ism.  Coming,  as  it  does,  to  correct  the  abuses  which 
have  perverted  the  true  purposes  of  the  system  just 
described,  is  it  to  be  wondered  at  that  it  should  incur  its 
deadly  hatred  and  its  uncompromising  hostility  ?  We 
hardly  believe  so.  '  The  system  of  fraternal  insurance  is, 
according  to  the  unchanging  logic  of  events,  destined  to 
pass  through  trials  similar  to  those  which  beset  savings 
banks  and  life  insurance.  That  the  test  will  not  be  so 
bitter  or  malevolent  will,  w^e  believe,  be  conceded  by  those 
who  consider  the  fact  that  the  innovation  is  not  so 


36 


The  Woodman^s  Hatid-Book. 


radical  as  were  these  at  the  time  the}^  were  introduced. 
At  the  same  time,  though,  there  will  be  a  struggle  to 
create  proper  legal  environments  which  will  protect  the 
worthy' from  the  unworthy,  as  well  as  the  entire  system, 
from  its  enemies.  What  we  now  need  most  is  honesty  of 
purpose  and  action,  an  intelligent  administration  of  the 
principles  underlying  the  system,  a  true  statement  of  its 
plans  and  purposes  among  the  general  public,  a  zealous 
supervision  of  its  rights,  and  a  determined  front  against 
abuses  wdiich  are  liable  to  creep  into  it.  With  these  pur- 
poses kept  steadily  in  view,  both  by  officers  and  mem- 
bers, the  cause  is  impervious,  and  will  withstand  tenfold 
more  opposition  than  has  thus  far  been  hurled  against  it. 

Immediately  after  the  war  the  savings  bank  became 
the  symbol  of  neutral  territory  —  a  place  wiiere  capital 
might  meet  labor,  that  both  might  profit  through  the 
mutuality  of  interests.  The  wise  and  reasonable  pru- 
dence and  the  consistent  economy,  which  will  go  far 
toward  solving  many  of  the  economic  questions  of  the 
present  day,  were  a  text  twenty-five  years  ago.  They  be- 
came the  title  of  many  a  beautiful  story,  and  furnished 
the  foundations  for  many  a  fairy  castle  in  Spain  from  the 
end  of  the  war  until  1877.  Nearly  everybody  had  some 
interest  in  a  savings  bank  in  those  days.  Looking  back- 
ward now,  it  would  seem  that  the  country  was  divided 
into  two  classes  —  those  who  conducted  savings  banks 
and  those  who  put  their  money  into  them.  Children 
saved  their  pennies,  servant  girls  hoarded  their  dimes, 
clerks  and  mechanics  came  with  their  weekly  or  monthh^ 
stipends,  and  the  "  pick  and  shovel  brigade  "  of  laborers, 
as  they  were  called,  made  continual  processions  to  the 
doors  of  these  savings  banks.  What  was  the  result  ? 
Disreputable  and  irresponsible  men  "  stole  the  livery  of 
heaven,"  speaking  metaphorically,  to  attain  their  per- 
sonal ends.  Chaos  ensued,  and  it  was  next  to  an  impos- 
sibility to   separate   the  worthy  from   the  unworthy. 


1 


Tlte  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


37 


Monopoly  saw  the  germs  of  a  dangerous  rival  looming 
up  in  the  indistinct  outlines  of  warring  masses.  The 
clamor  was  heard  in  the  halls  of  legislation.  Doubtful 
at  lirst,  it  swayed  in  the  balance,  and  faint-hearted  ex- 
ponents were  fearful  as  to  the  final  outcome.  The  laws 
were  revised.  These  institutions  were  required  to  show 
a  certificate  of  character  as  essential  to  the  continuance 
of  their  existence.  The  unworthy  dropped  out,  or  were 
forced  out,  as  is  now  the  case  with  fraternal  insurance. 
'Those  properly  constructed  and  manned  had  fostering 
laws  placed  around  them.  They  lived  down  the  stigma 
attached  to  their  systems  by  charlatans  and  adventurers, 
and  to-day  they  stand  forth  in  bold  relief  as  not  only 
among  the  safest  fiduciary  institutions  of  the  land,  but 
as  representatives  of  hundreds  of  millions  of  dollars  held 
in  trust.  Is  not  this  an  illustration  of  the  imperisha- 
bility of  a  principle  founded  upon  the  bed-rock  of  com- 
mon sense  and  nurtured  b}^  laws  of  a  supervising  cliar- 
acter — ^laws  whose  province  it  is  to  protect  rather  than 
to  crush  ?  AVe  certainly  believe  so.  The  savings  banks 
have  survived  an  onslaught  far  more  powerful  and  vin- 
dictive than  that  which  has  been  waged  thus  far  against 
fraternal  insurance.  And  shall  we,  in  the  light  of  tliis 
experience,  supinely  throw  up  our  hands  ?  Perish  the 
thought ! 

And  why  should  it  not  ?  Are  not  its  purposes  en- 
nobling, elevating,  and  practical  ?  Is  it  not  a  practical 
form  of  beneficence  which  embodies  in  its  context  the 
payment  of  stipulated  sums  in  case  of  sickness  or  death? 
Is  there  anything  immoral  or  dangerous  in  this  ?  Does 
it  not  afi'ord  a  competency  during  life  and  a  benefit  in 
after  years  when,  perchance,  sickn'ess,  disappointment,  or 
old  age  may  have  incapacitated  one  for  battling  against 
an  adverse  fate  ?  It  is  philanthropy  exemplified  in  its 
truest  and  broadest  sense.  It  is  an  enemy  to  poverty 
and  crime.    It  encourages  frugality  and  steadfastness  of 


38 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


purpose,  and  promotes  the  well-being  of  all  who  identify 
themselves  with  it  and  live  up  to  its  teachings. 

These  are  the  cardinal  points  of  the  system  now  un- 
dergoing a  process  of  renovation.  That  it  will  live  and 
spread  out  its  protecting  environs  as  people  understand 
it  better  should  not  be  doubted  for  a  moment.  It,  like 
truth,  is  imperishable,  and  it  will  be  in  the  floodtide  of 
its  prosperity  when  its  traducers  shall  have  passed  into 
the  oblivion  they  so  richly  merit. —  Fraternal  Monitor. 


Life  Insurance. 


Life  insurance  is  as  old  as  Roman  history.  Its  first 
phase  was  the  payment  in  Utopian  days  of  a  single  sum 
for  a  fixed  and  limited  benefit,  such  as  a  sea  voyage  or 
other  temporary  enterprises,  much  after  the  manner  of 
marine  insurance.  A  century  and  a  half  ago,  England 
adopted  whole  life  insurance  upon  level  annual  payments. 
This  shortly  became  popular  in  Europe,  and  later  met 
with  wonderful  success  in  this  country.  But  American 
sagacity  was  not  satisfied.  The  level  premium  system 
companies  had  abused  the  trusts  committed  to  their  care. 
Enormous  sums  accumulated  in  their  coff'ers,  as  against 
the  future  when  the  premiums  to  be  paid  should  fall  be- 
low the  costs  of  the  risks  which  they  had  stipulated  to 
carry,  were  squandered  upon  illegitimate  enterprises  until 
the  panic  of  1873  in  America  disclosed  the  incapacity  of 
many  to  fulfill  their  contracts,  and  ushered  in  a  carnival 
of  receiverships.  Men  of  intelligence  began  to  examine 
into  the  credentials  of  old-line  life  insurance.  They 
found  there  was  no  provision  in  their  calculations  for  re- 
placing sums  lost  through*  the  many  loopholes  of  bad  in- 
vestment ;   that  the  laws  were  ineffectual  to  prevent 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh,  39 


chicanery  on  the  part  of  the  management ;  that  they  ran 
great  risks  in  having  to  guarantee  the  rates  of  interest 
and  mortality  for  years  to  come.  They  found  the  officers 
extravagantly  housed  in  sumptuous  apartments,  drawing 
fat  salaries,  limited  only  by  their  own  notions  of  the  value 
of  their  services.  They  also  found,  when  the  necessity 
of  insurance  had  ceased,  that  they  would  only  receive  a 
small  fraction  of  their  overpayments,  and  that  promises 
of  dividends  were  a  snare  and  a  delusion. 

Such  a  state  of  things  could  not  continue.  Something 
must  be  instituted  which  would  do  away  with  such  glar- 
ing defects.  American  ingenuity  w^as  equal  to  the  emer- 
gency, and  the  natural  premium  or  assessment  insurance 
came  to  the  surface  in  a  number  of  different  forms.  It  is 
quite  true  that  its  originators  were  for  the  most  part  men 
lacking  in  life  insurance  education  and  training.  The 
old-line  companies  were  able  and  willing  to  deride  it  for 
its  weakness,  and  avail  themselves  of  every  opportunity 
to  denounce  the  new  scheme.  But  it  contained  the  germ 
of  something  grand  ;  success  was  but  a  matter  of  time. 
Thanks  to  the  very  criticisms  of  our  opponents,  w^e  began 
to  see  our  mistakes  and  to  remedy  them  ;  until  the  public, 
with  that  keen  foresight  which  characterizes  our  American 
people,  recognized  the  value  of  the  assessment  or  natural- 
premium  system  of  life  insurance,  and  straightway  en- 
rolled themselves  under  our  banners  until  we  soon  had 
upon  our  books  a  membership  greater  than  the  old-liners 
had  accumulated  in  a  half  a  century. —  E.  B.  Harper  he- 
fore  Mutual  Life  Underwriters. 


Who  is  Benefited  by  the  Fraternities? 


The  husband  is  interested  and  benefited  by  the  assur- 
ance of  assistance  in  the  hour  of  sickness  and  need.  The 


40 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


wife  is  benefited  in  the  hour  of  distress  ;  she  is  not  a 
burden  to  her  husband  ;  the  son  and  daughter  also  feel 
their  independence. 

The  wife  is  interested  in  having  her  husband  join  a 
benevolent  order.  The  wife  of  to-day  is  the  widow  of  to- 
morrow. The  wife  should  provide  for  the  widow.  The 
neglected  wife  becomes  the  penniless  widow.  Therefore, 
it  is  the  duty  of  every  wife  to  give  her  personal  attention 
to  securing  her  husband's  admission  into  a  benevolent 
order.  In  addition,  it  associates  him  with  those  who 
would  aid  him  in  sickness  and  befriend  him  should  mis- 
fortune overtake  him.  The  wife  and  family  are  not  the 
only  ones  benefited  by  his  belonging  to  the  order ;  it 
benefits  the  man  himself.  It  cultivates  thrift  and 
economy.  Small  sums  formerly  frittered  away  in  odds 
and  ends,  in  little  nothings,  are  now  husbanded,  and  thus 
habits  are  formed  that  tend  to  industry,  economy,  and 
competence.  There  are  times  in  the  life  of  almost  every 
man  when  he  needs  a  helping  hand,  a  little  credit,  loan, 
or  extension  of  time.  Such  help  may  tide  him  over  a 
difficulty,  perhaps  float  him  out  into  the  broad  sea  of 
prosperity.  Such  aid  or  favor  can  be  more  easily  secured 
by  the  members  of  an  order.  In  joining  an  order  men 
or  \Yomen  have  their  ideas  broadened  and  their  views  (»r 
life  enlarged,  opportunities  are  opened  that  might  not 
have  been  enjoyed  in  any  other  way.  The  mind  is  freed 
from  anxiety  for  the  future  of  the  family  in  case  of  sick- 
ness or  death,  thus  health  is  improved  ;  all  moves  on  freer 
in  life's  work.  They  have  more  hope,  courage,  and 
strength,  and  as  a  consequence  they  succeed  better.  It  is 
the  liberal  soul  that  is  made  fat.  It  is  the  stagnant  pool, 
not  the  overflowing  fountain,  that  dries  up. 


H.  C.  Hedges,  Head  Adviser. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


41 


Wonderful  Growth  of  Assessment  Life 
Insurance. 


Twenty-five  years  ago  the  science  of  life  insurance  was 
in  an  embrj^o  condition  in  this  countr3^  It  was  then 
plain  life  insurance  with  but  few  speculative  features. 

There  were  at  that  time  about  eighty-three  old-line 
companies  that  did  the  bulk  of  the  business  in  this  coun- 
try, and  they  used  the  same  tables  of  premium  rates  that 
they  employ  to-day. 

Twenty-five  years  ago  fraternal  insurance  on  the  lodge 
plan  was  inaugurated  by  the  organization  of  the  Ancient 
Order  of  United  Workmen  at  Meadville,  Penn.  Its 
proposition  to  insure  members  at  actual  cost  met  with 
violent  opposition  from  every  old-line  company,  but  its 
advent  was  the  dawn  of  a  new  era  in  life  insurance. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  the  changes  time  has  wrought. 
In  1882;  ten  years  ago,  there  were  but  thirty  old-line 
companies  of  importance  surviving  out  of  the  original 
eighty-three. 

On  the  other  hand,  assessment  insurance  had  developed 
in  a  remarkable  degree.  The  Ancient  Order  of  United 
Workmen,  the  pioneer  of  beneficiary  orders,  had  not  only 
attained  a  large  membership,  but  was  one  of  a  family 
numbering  fifty-nine  beneficiary  societies. —  Fraternal 
Monitor. 


Legitimate  Fraternity  Never  Fails. 


Amid  the  crash  of  corporations,  business  enterprises, 
schemes,  and  associations  by  a  hundred  names,  it  is  with 
pride  that  the  record  of  the  past  can  be  pointed  to,  and 
nowhere  along  the  line  is  there  the  record  of  the  failure 


42 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


of  a  single  legitimate  fraternal  order.  Wherever  a  fra- 
ternity has  been  builded  upon  honest  fraternal  founda- 
tions, that  institution  is  still  in  existence.  Masonry,  Odd 
Fellowship,  Woodcraft,  Druidism,  Forestry,  Redmanship, 
Good  Templars,  Pythianism,  Workmanship,  Knights  of 
Honor,  Royal  Arcanum,  American  Legion  of  Honor, 
Chosen  Friends,  and  others,  instituted  for  the  good  of 
mankind,  and  for  truly  sacred  and  unselfish  purposes,  are 
still  here,  and  will  be  here  as  long  as  the  necessity  exists 
for  mutual  relief  and  protection. 

No  other  cause  of  any  character  can  show  such  a  record. 
Creeds,  religion,  parties,  sects,  monetary,  moral,  benevo- 
lent, charitable,  and  business  enterprises  of  every  variety 
have  changed,  been  added  to  or  taken  from,  appeared 
and  disappeared  by  hundreds,  but  the  legitimate  frater- 
nities stand  to-day  as  at  the  beginning,  only  gathering 
strength  and  influence,  and  aggregating  for  humanity's 
good  as  the  years  and  centuries  go  by. 

Opposition  in  almost  every  form  has  been  hurled 
against  them.  Money  and  influence  have  been  lavishly 
expended  to  destroy  them,  but  while  the  men  who  de- 
nounced them  are  relegated  to  oblivion  and  have  been 
forgotten,  the  grand  orders  are  still  here.  The  fraternities 
may  well  be  pardoned  for  having  some  pride  as  they  re- 
view this  great  record. —  San  Francisco  Call. 


Benefit  Societies  and  Their  Origin. 


We  find  upon  oareful  investigation  that  the  first  bene- 
ficiary organizations  that  ever  existed  were  known  as 
Friendly  Societies.  The  uncertainties  of  human  life  and 
health  and  the  effects  of  these  on  the  well-being  of  those 
who  are  dependent  for  their  subsistence  on  human  labor, 


•r 


TJie  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


43 


are  too  manifest  not  to  have  arrested  the  attention  of 
men  in  all  ages  and  to  have  taxed  their  ingenuity  to 
guard  against  them.  It  is  probable,  therefore,  that  traces 
of  some  sort  of  institutions,  corresponding  more  or  less 
closely  to  the  friendly  societies  of  modern  Europe,  might 
be  found  wherever  mankind  have  not  depended  for  their 
means  of  living  on  the  spontaneous  product  of  the  soil. 
At  all  events,  they  had  their  prototypes  in  the  cases, 
boxes  or  chests,  or  kists  —  as  they  were  called  in  Scotland 
and  Germany — -of  the  guilds  and  corporations  of  mediseval 
Europe,  wdiich  were  funds  not  only  for  maintaining  the 
dignity  and  ministering  to  the  conviviality  of  the  mem- 
bers, but  for  providing  for  the  aged  and  the  sick.  They 
were  found  in  Anglo-Saxon  England,  and  like  the  other 
institutions  connected  with  municipal  life,  they  probably 
formed  part  of  the  legacy  of  the  Romans  to  the  Teutonic 
conquerors  of  Europe. 

Friendly  societies  are  a  form  of  mutual  insurance,  and 
like  all  insurances,  they  depend  upon  the  principle  of 
substituting  the  certainty  which  attends  the  fortunes  of 
large  numbers  of  men  for  the  uncertainty  which  belongs 
to  the  fortune  of  each.  Their  main  objects  are  the  se- 
curing, in  virtue  of  a  small  periodical  payment  during 
health  and  vigor,  of  a  weekly  sum  during  sickness,  a  sum 
to  cover  funeral  expenses  at  death,  and  sometimes  of  a 
pension  after  a  certain  age. 

In  many  respects,  therefore,  joining  a  society  of  this 
character  is  better  than  becoming  a  depositor  in  a  sav- 
ings bank.  Sickness  may  come  before  the  savings  are 
considerable,  they  may  be  melted  away  by  long-continued 
sickness  ;  but  after  the  first  payment  is  made  in  one  of 
these  societies,  the  member  is  secure  of  succor,  at  least 
for  a  time,  and  in  the  event  of  death  his  family  are  not 
thrown  on  the  cold  charities  of  the  world.  It  is  possible, 
on  the  other  hand  —  but  hardly  probable  —  that  a 
difficulty  may  be  experienced,  in  certain  circumstances, 


44 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


in  keeping  up  the  payments  required,  and  in  this  case, 
in  most  societies,  lie  altogether  forfeits  the  expected 
benefits. 

One  great  mistake  that  originally  existed  in  the  forma- 
tion of  friendly  or  benefit  societies  was  to  assume  that 
each  member  should  pay  an  equal  sum,  whatever  his  age 
might  be.  This  is  still  in  vogue  in  England  to  some 
extent,  but  in  this  country  it  is  nearly,  if  not  quite,  en- 
tirely eliminated.  It  was  certainly  unjust  to  the  younger 
members,  w^ho  are  less  likely  to  become  burdensome  to 
the  funds  than  the  middle-aged  ;  and,  indeed,  there  is  a 
rising  scale  of  probability  of  sickness  throughout  all  the 
years  of  a  man's  life.  It  is  well  to  remember  that  as 
sickness  varies  more  considerably  than  mortality  with 
the  salubrity  of  the  localities  inhabited  and  the  occupa- 
tions of  the  members,  no  absolute  reliance  can  be  placed 
on  published  averages.  All  of  them,  however,  agree  in 
this,  that  increase  of  years  is  attended  by  increased 
liability  to  sickness.  To  admit  all  ages,  then,  at  an  equal 
payment  is  clearly  making  the  younger  members  pay 
for  the  elder. 

A  well-constituted  benefit  society  involves,  in  the  first 
place,  the  principle  of  payments  appropriate  to  particular 
ages,  as  no  other  plan  can  be  considered  equitable.  It 
stands  forth  before  the  middle  and  the  working-classes  as 
a  permanent  institution,  like  the  old-line  life  insurance 
societies  to  the  upper  classes,  and  necessarily  requires  its 
members  to  consider  the  connection  they  form  with  it  as 
an  enduring  one,  because  its  grand  aim  is  to  expressly 
make  provision  at  one  period  of  life  for  contingencies 
which  may  arise  at  another  —  for  youth,  in  short,  to 
endow  old  age. 

It  is  essential  to  the  character  of  a  proper  benefit 
society  that  individuals  be  not  admitted  indiscriminately. 
To  take  a  person  in  bad  health,  or  of  broken  constitution, 
is  unjust  to  those  members  who  are  healthy,  because  he 


The  Woodmcur s  Hand-Bool:. 


45 


is  obviously  more  likely  to  become  a  speedy  burden  upon 
the  funds.  Here,  as  in  life  insurance  societies,  it  is 
necessary  to  admit  members  only  upon  their  showing 
that  they  are  of  sound  constitution  and  in  good  health. 
And  in  our  judgment  it  would  be  well  not  to  grant  o.ny 
benefits  until  after  the  member  has  been  a  year  in  the 
society.  By  these  means  men  would  be  induced  to  enter 
when  they  are  hale  and  well  instead  of  postponing  the 
step  until  they  have  a  pressing  need  of  assistance,  when 
their  endeavor  to  get  into  a  benefit  society  becomes  little 
else  than  a  fraud.  The  most  careful  medical  examina- 
tion having  shown  that  even  physicians  are  often  de- 
ceived. —  Woodman. 


A  Practical  View. 


A  member  at  the  age  of  forty  years  has  an  expectancy 
of  life  ecjual  to  twenty-seven  and  one-fourth  years  ;  one 
hundred  members  of  that  age  have  a  combined  age  of 
two  thousand  seven  htmdred  and  twenty-five  years,  and 
if  all  were  contributing  members  for  the  full  period  of 
their  lives,  $200,000  would  be  necessary  to  meet  their 
obligations  ;  and  if  there  were  no  additions  to  this  num- 
ber to  change  the  age,  it  would  require  from  each  of 
these  men  $74  monthly  to  meet  the  final  payments. 
Xow  then,  if  a  lodge  of  fifty  members  whose  average  age 
of  membership  is  about  forty  years  goes  along  and 
maintains  its  existence  without  new  members  to  keep 
down  the  age,  they  are  just  so  much  a  drag  upon  the 
society  or  order  to  which  they  belong  as  the  difference  is 
between  what  they  pay  in  and  the  $74  which  is  necessary 
to  keep  them  alive.  If  this  latter  amount  had  really  to 
be  paid,  there  would  be  no  beneficiary  societies  ;  but  it 


/ 


46  The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 

would  show  the  necessity  for  work.  Do  you  know  how 
many  new  men  introduced  into  your  lodge,  say  of  one 
hundred  men,  will  keep  you  in  a  healthy  condition  ?  Six 
new  men  yearly,  of  an  average  of  thirty  years,  will  keep 
a  lodge  in  healthy  operation.  Sixty  new  men  will  keep 
a  society  of  one  thousand  men  at  the  average  age  of  forty 
years,  provided  additional  men  of  thirty  years'  average 
are  taken  in  to  even  up  the  men  who  may  be  taken  in  at 
an  initial  age  above  forty  years. 

Impress  this  fact  upon  your  minds,  brothers,  that  if 
you  are  belonging  to  a  lodge  that  is  doing  no  work,  that 
it  requires  this  proportion  of  six  to  one  hundred  to  place 
your  lodge  in  a  healthy  condition,  after  you  have  enough 
men  in  it  to  bring  the  average  age  to  forty  years. 

This  statement  is  made  after  a  very  careful  analysis  of 
the  progress  of  assessment  societies;  and  in  this  issue  of  the 
Guide  we  have  the  matter  figured  out  so  plainl}^  that  we 
think  all  must  understand  it.  We  present  the  main  facts 
to  the  members  of  all  fraternal  societies,  that  if  each 
lodge  organized  will  determine  that  it  will  do  its  duty  to 
all  lodges.  The  demand  for  work  is  really  very  light  — 
six  new  members  under  thirty  years  for  every  hundred 
members.  A  lodge  that  cannot  raise  this  proportion  of 
increase  had  better  go  out  of  business. —  Exchange. 


Privileges  of  Fraternity. 


Fraternity  embodies  many  indisputable  benefits.  Many 
are  the  men  who  connect  themselves  with  secret  and 
beneficial  orders  who  do  not  look  after  or  take  part  in 
the  necessary  workings  of  the  order,  and  accordingly 
sacrifice  their  attendant  benefits.    Some  have  expressed 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


47 


themselves  ■  to  the  effect  that  it  is  an  old  story  to  go  to 
lodge,  and  that  they  have  had  their  apportionment  of  ex- 
perience in  their  younger  days.  True,  one  can  get  con- 
siderable experience,  should  he  begin  when  young  and 
be  a  regular  attendant  for  a  period  of  years,  and  yet  when 
looking  back  upon  the  bonds  of  friendship  which  were 
created  through  his  associations  with  the  lodge,  the  good 
times  which  were  had,  and  the  substantial  benefits  en- 
joyed, it  will  only  be  in  a  very  few  cases  where  any  re- 
gret can  be  expressed  ;  on  the  contrary,  a  value  will  be 
placed  upon  it,  which,  were  it  possible,  would  not  be  ex- 
changed for  gold. 

From  day  to  day  men  constantly  come  together  in 
business  relations,  their  intercourse  is  from  necessity 
short  and  to  the  point,  on  account  of  business  matters, 
and  they  scarcely  stop  for  a  friendh^  greeting  or  to  make 
a  neighborly  inquiry.  This  conduct  unthoughtedly 
grows  into  months  and  years,  and  the  business  man  con- 
tinues to  think  that  he  has  no  time  to  spend  in  the  lodge 
or  among  his  friends  and  brothers  in  social  ways,  and  in 
the  care  of  tlie  order.  The  grind  of  daih^  toil  is  very 
wear3nng,  and  should  be  relieved.  A  i)leasant  evening 
occasionally  spent  in  the  lodge-room,  where  the  detail  of 
cash  value"  is  lost  sight  of  for  a  few  minutes,  and  gen- 
uine pleasure  indulged  in,  counts  for  more  in  resting  the 
mind  and  preparing  one  for  the  following  day's  work 
than  many  people  recognize.  There  is  a  little  book  pub- 
lished, called  Ethics  of  Eest,"  wherein  it  is  stated  that 
rest  does  not  come  so  much  through  absolute  avoidance 
of  work  for  a  period  as  in  a  change  of  occupation,  em- 
ploying different  muscles  from  those  in  constant  use,  and 
directing  one's  thoughts  in  a  different  train  from  its  cus- 
tomary following;  that  the  stoppage  of  work,  and  in  a 
sense  the  laying  of  one's  self  on  the  shelf  for  rest,  is  in 
fact  not  so  conducive  to  beneficial  rest  as  some  recreation 
would  be. 


48 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


This  reasoning  is  an  argument  in  favor  of  the  occasional 
rest  and  recreation  which  comes  from  one  mingling  with 
one's  brothers  in  lodge  or  ruling  meetings.  Life  is  too 
short  to  keep  one's  brain  in  a  worry  all  the  time,  and  as 
we  only  have  once  to  live  on  this  earth,  one  should  be 
mindful  of  his  happiness  here,  and  be  benefited  by  con- 
tributing to  the  happiness  of  others.  It  is  no  conde- 
scension for  a  man  in  any  business  or  high  social  stand- 
ing to  contribute  his  voice  and  abilities  in  conducting  a 
beneficial  order  or  lodge,  and  he  makes  friends  by  it.  If 
one  absents  himself  entirely  from  the  meetings,  it  will 
more  than  likely  be  thought  by  some  that  the  absentee, 
while  apparently  glad  enough  to  enjoy  the  benefits  of  the 
order  when  ill,  and  to  carefully  protect  his  standing  as  a 
member  for  the  sake  of  his  family,  he  seems  to  feel  a  little 
better  than  his  associates  would  be.  The  eff^ect  in  any 
case  of  that  kind,  while  it  absolutely  might  not  do  the 
member  any  harm,  will  perhaps  show  more  clearly  how 
he  would  be  benefited  was  he  even  an  occasional  attend- 
ant and  co-operator  in  the  aff'airs  of  the  order  which  he 
encouraged  b}^  his  membership. 

The  social  features  of  any  particular  lodge  are  just 
what  the  members  have  a  mind  to  make  it  ;  that  is,  can 
be  made  to  interest  their  members,  and  contribute  largely 
to  the  acquaintance  and  filial  regard  of  one  for  another, 
or  it  can  amount  to  naught  if  no  energies  are  bent  to 
bring  out  the  virtues  of  its  privileges. —  Exchange. 


Perpetuity  of  Co-operative  Societies. 


A  glance  into  history  on  this  subject  proves  interesting 
for  many  reasons.  Almost  every  nation  has  its  societies 
for  mutual  assistance  under  some  name,  and  they  have 
well-defined  aims  and  certain  methods  of  attaining  their 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


49 


objects.  But  it  may  be  truly  stated  that  not  one  would 
be  able  to  keep  its  promises  or  continue  on  its  course 
were  it  not  for  the  principle  of  co-operation,  which  is  a 
necessary  part  of  the  plan.  Co-operation  signifies  the 
work  of  many  for  one,  the  work  of  one  for  all ;  it  means 
much  for  little,  the  most  for  the  least  cost ;  the  best  pro- 
duct for  the  least  expenditure  of  productive  effort. 

Realizing  this  to  be  a  fact,  men  in  all  ages  have  com- 
bined to  accomplish  together  that  which  was  impossible 
of  attainment  by  single  effort. 

The  societies  of  the  ancients,  the  clubs  and  guilds  of 
mediaeval  history,  the  Athenian  devotees  of  Ceres,  the 
orders  having  their  birth  in  the  time  of  the  crusades,  re- 
ligious confraternities,  and  the  guilds  of  trade,  all  sprang 
from  the  desire  of  individuals  to  have  the  help  of  many 
to  attain  a  given  object.  And  such  unions,  properly  con- 
ceived and  wisely  guided,  have  never  failed. 

In  early  times  these  mutual  organizations  were  formed 
to  promote  some  religious,  political,  or  social  object ;  to 
reduce  or  cast  off  depression ;  to  preserve  caste,  or 
abolish  it ;  to  extend  kingdoms  or  change  kings  ;  to  pro- 
tect classes  ;  to  assuage  suffering  ;  to  give  alms  ;  to  shield 
the  members  of  the  association.  Farther  than  to  objects 
of  this  character,  the  principle  of  co-operation  can  hardly 
be  said  to  have  gone.  It  was  reserved  to  a  more  recent 
period  for  the  idea  of  financial  co-operation  in  fraterni- 
ties to  prevail.  We  can  see  the  dim  dawn  in  the  Count 
of  Winton  Society,  founded  in  1168,  still  existing  in 
Enp-land.  The  following  list,  taken  from  the  report  of 
the  chief  registrar  of  parliament,  gives  us  a  slight  view 
of  the  development  and  perpetuity  of  the  co-operative 
insurance  idea,  because  their  survival  to-day,  after  hun- 
dreds of  years  of  beneficent  existence,  proves  the  success 
to  be  one  of  fact,  not  theory  : 

"The  Count  of  Winton  Society,  1168  ;  Lord  Evans  So- 
ciety, 1358  ;  Society  of  Linton,  1708  ;  Norman  of  Lon- 

4 


50  The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 

don,  1703;  Earl  Skilton,  1704;  Defoe  Benefit,  1687; 
Ovington  of  Northumberland,  1711  ;  Gould  Smith  of 
London,  1712  ;  Mutual  Brothers  of  London,  1717  ;  Hope 
of  London,  1720  ;  Royal  Artillery,  1751 ;  Canterbury 
Friendly  Society,  1737  ;  Whittenton's  Mens'  Society, 
1754;  Charitable  Society,  1759;  The  Amerly  Clothiers' 
Society,  1760  ;  Norton,  1760  ;  Old  Spread  Eagle  Society, 
1762  ;  Wheat  Sheaf  Friendly  Society,  1763  ;  The  Kingsley 
Friendly  Society,  1765  ;  Meriden  Friendly  Society,  1768  ; 
Amicable  Life,  1772  ;  Clergy  Mutual,  1829  ;  Equitable, 
1762;  Friends'  Provident,  1832;  Hand-in-Hand,  1696; 
London  Life  Association,  1806  ;  Metropolitan,  1835  ; 
Mutual,  1831  ;  Scottish  Equitable,  1831  ;  Scottish  Pro- 
vident, 1837  ;  Scottish  Widows,  1815." 

There  are  to-day  over  ten  thousand  other  societies  of 
this  kind  in  England  alone,  embracing  a  membership  of 
more  than  seven  million.  The  oldest  is  over  seven  hun- 
dred years  old ;  the  next  oldest  is  over  five  hundred 
years  of  age.  Millions  upon  millions  of  dollars  have 
been  paid  in  claims  by  organizations.  To  quote  the 
words  of  the  Transcript . 

Most  of  these  societies  have  been  paying  a  benefit 
of  over  $1,000  on  the  death  of  a  member,  for  an  annual 
average  cost,  aside  from  dues  for  expenses,  old  and  young 
of  insurable  age,  of  $10  for  each  $1,000  protection.  This 
proves  not  only  the  stability  of  the  system,  but  also  that 
substantial  benefits  can  safely  be  furnished  at  actual  cost. 
There  has  never  been  a  single  failure  of  an  assessment 
society,  that  is,  a  national  society  in  which  there  was  no 
limit  to  the  number  of  members  to  be  admitted,  and  at 
the  same  time  the  benefit  paid  being  limited  to  a  specified 
sum,  not  exceeding  $1,000." 

Can  we  estimate  the  good  that  has  been  done  through 
the  ages  to  those  who  sleep  upon  a  thousand  hillsides 
now  ?  How  much  bearing  of  each  other's  burdens," 
unheralded  and  unknown  to  the  recipients,  there  was 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Boo Jc. 


51 


among  the  fraternities  of  the  past  the  world  will  never 
know.  But  by  the  deeds  known,  and  the  existence  still 
among  us  of  those  institutions,  we  would  be  as  false  and 
ungrateful  as  Judas  to  refuse  to  acknowledge  their  su- 
perior worth. 

Do  we  wonder  that  the  present  century  has  given  birth 
to  conscientious  and  hard  thought  upon  the  financial 
science  of  co-operation  ? 

A  diamond  in  the  rough  is  a  diamond  all  the  same, 
but  when  it  has  been  faceted  by  the  skilled  fingers  of  the 
lapidary  its  inner  light  sparkles  and  speaks  of  the  beau- 
ties which  ever  existed  there.  And  do  we  wonder  that 
those  who  have  been  accustomed  to  looking  at  the  dia- 
mond in  the  rough  stand  incredulous  before  the  finished 
gem,  saying  ''it  is  too  wonderful  —  it  cannot  be  done  ! 
—  Fraternal  Monitor. 


To  be  Remembered. 


That  no  legitimate  fraternal  society  has  ever  failed  in 
the  history  of  this  nation,  and  that  the  standard  legiti- 
mate orders  from  the  days  of  Masonry  down  to  the  last 
legitimate  order  formed  are  still  here  ;  and  that  cannot 
be  said  of  any  other  branch  of  business  or  enterprise, 
'moral,  religious,  political,  or  sectarian. 

These  orders  collect  nothing  in  advance.  They  carry 
their  members  from  month  to  month,  and  the  members 
are  only  required  to  pay  monthly  the  actual  expenses  of 
the  preceding  month.  If  at  the  end  of  the  month  he 
discharges  his  indebtedness  for  the  month  before,  he  can 
do  so  and  remain  in,  and  if  he  declines  he  has  the  right 
and  privilege  to  withdraw,  and  not  assume  the  expense 
for  another  month,  and  having  been  carried  himself  up 


52 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh 


to  the  time  for  which  he  has  paid,  the  society  owes  him 
nothing,  and  if  every  institution  was  to  go  out  of  exist- 
ence on  the  first  day  of  next  month  they  would  not  owe 
one  penny  to  a  single  one  of  their  members.  —  Canadian 
Rainbow. 


Annual  Address  of  John  H,  Butler^  President 
National  Fraternal  Congress. 


The  following  address  was  delivered  at  the  third 
annual  session,  held  in  Boston,  November,  1889  : 

Gentlemen  of  the  National  Fraternal  Congress,  and  Brothers  : 
You  have  assembled  for  the  fourth  time  and  in  third 
annual  session,  as  representatives  of  fraternities  whose 
purposes  are  to  develop  in  their  living  members  tlie  true 
spirit  of  brotherly  love,  and  to  provide  for  the  widows, 
orphan  children,  and  dependents  of  deceased  members 
abundant  protection.  The  world  has  witnessed  the  ma- 
jestic growth  of  associations  whose  time-honored  records 
for  valiant  achievements  in  charitable  work  bear  illus- 
trious testimony  to  the  existence  of  noble  instincts  and 
aspirations  in  humanity.  The  great  brotherhoods  which 
have  been  founded  within  the  shrines  of  Masonry  and 
Odd  Fellowship,  and  whose  mystic  cords,  reaching  back- 
ward into  the  historic  past,  have  multiplied  with  the 
years,  and  through  which  millions  of  hearts,  irrespective 
of  race  or  clime  —  so  that  they  believed  in  God  —  have 
been  bound  in  fraternal  union,  are  enduring  monuments 
to  a  grandeur  and  nobility  in  manhood.  The  amount  of 
good  which  these  organizations  have  accomplished  is 
well  nigh  inconceivable  in  its  extent  ;  yet  they  have 
never  claimed  or  attempted  to  offer  substantial  benefits 
to  the  homes  and  families  of  their  deceased  members. 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Booh. 


53 


To  their  poor  and  unfortunate  with  unstinted  hand  have 
they  brought  their  generous  offerings,  not  alone  of 
money,  but  of  brotherly  sympathy  and  a  strong  uplifting 
arm.  Beside  the  newly-made  graves  of  the  departed 
they  have  through  the  centuries  mingled  their  tears 
with  those  of  the  widow  and  the  orphans,  and  by  acts  of 
kindness  and  watchfulness  lightened  the  sorrow  in  their 
saddened  hearts  and  homes. 

Beyond  this  in  the  line  of  helpfulness  and  aid  the 
older  fraternities  have  not  carried  their  charitable  pur- 
pose. If  the  comforts  of  the  home  which  the  husband 
and  father  had  supplied  were  to  be  continued  after  his 
decease,  he  must  needs  purchase  the  protection  of  those 
who  made  a  business  of  providing  it.  Unfortunately  this 
protection  could  not  be  purchased  under  existing  market 
rates  at  a  price  within  the  ability  of  those  whose  need  of 
it  was  the  greatest.  For  the  home  of  him  who  could 
meet  the  purchase  price  of  the  commodity  it  would  not 
probably  be  required.  On  the  other  hand,  where  the 
requirement  even  of  the  necessities  of  life  was  actual  the 
heavy  cost  barred  its  acquirement.  Those  who 'did  not 
need  could  have  ;  those  who  did  need  could  not  have. 

An  humble  mechanic  in  a  small  Pennsylvania  village, 
twenty-one  years  ago,  quietly,  unostentatiously,  and  even 
to  himself  unconsciously  touched  a  spring  which  set  in 
operation  a  movement  which  has  proved  in  itself  to  be 
the  most  valuable  and  important  system  of  protection  for 
the  home  mankind  has  ever  possessed. 

He  lived  to  witness  the  development  of  his  simple  idea 
into  the  great  fraternal  beneficiary  system.  He  saw  the 
army  of  brothers  from  his  little  band  of  men  in  Meadville 
increase  year  by  year  in  numbers,  in  strength  and  char- 
acter, until  there  had  passed  in  review  before  his  happy 
vision  almost  a  million  of  fraternal  men  enlisted  under 
the  standard  which  he  had  raised,  and  confident  of  pro- 
tection assured  to  their  homes.     The  records  spread 


54  The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 

before  him  evidenced  the  distribution,  by  virtue  of  its 
simple  operation,  of  more  than  one  hundred  millions  in 
the  homes  of  the  common  people  of  his  country  ;  those 
who  needed  could  have,  because  the  beneficent  system 
had  brought  the  price  of  protection  within  the  means  of 
the  humblest  mechanic  at  the  bench,  the  clerk  at  his 
desk,  and  the  laborer  who  tilled  the  soil. 

A  few  years  ago  his  spirit  was  borne  by  the  angels  to 
the  eternal  realms,  there  to  receive  the  reward  due  the 
faithful  who  have  served  well  their  fellow  men  ;  and  to 
hear  the  messages  of  gratitude  which  shall  arise  from 
thousands  of  homes  made  and  to  be  made  comfortable 
by  the  benefaction  of  fraternities  founded  upon  his 
simple  plan.  His  body  was  tenderly  laid  to  rest  by  his 
mourning  brethren.  His  memory  is  held  in  loving  re- 
membrance by  the  fraternal  men  of  every  society  and  asso- 
ciation, and  the  grand  order  which  he  founded  has 
erected,  and  is  even  now  dedicating  by  fitting  ceremonies, 
and  with  words  which  will  endure  even  after  the  ma- 
terial which  composes  it  shall  have  crumbled  into  dust,  a 
magnificent  monument  to  perpetuate  the  name  of  John 
J.  Upchurch. 

The  method  of  this  system  is  of  the  simplest  character. 
It  is  briefly  described  :  Aid  promised  by  mutual  efi'ort 
and  guaranteed  by  fraternity.  That  brotherly  love 
taught  and  inspired  by  the  example  of  the  older  frater- 
nities is  the  element  that  is  applied  to  the  collection 
and  distribution  of  the  benefits  formerly  supplied  only 
through  business  or  commercial  channels.  Every  thought 
of  gain  or  profit  is  eliminated  from  the  process.  The  sole 
mercenary  feature  which  can  exist  under  the  system 
only  adds  to  its  stability,  and  lies  in  the  natural  fact  that 
each  brother  is  inspired  by  the  love  of  his  own  home  to 
protect  the  widow  and  the  fatherless  in  the  home  of  his 
deceased  brother.  But  around  the  system,  as  a  sustain- 
ing power  and  support,  a  reserve  force  of  vital  strength, 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


55 


maintaining  its  solidity  and  guaranteeing  its  perpetuity, 
is  the  fraternal  sentiment,  to  a  greater  or  less  extent  ex- 
isting in  the  heart  of  every  man,  which  is  kindled  and 
kept  aglow  by  the  ennobling  influences  and  the  love  of 
kindly  deeds  and  charitable  work  encouraged  and  pro- 
moted within  the  lodge-room  and  council-chamber. 


Annual  Address  of  A.  R,  Savage^  President 
National  Fraternal  Congress. 


At  the  fourth  annual  session,  held  at  AVashington,  D.  C, 
November,  1890,  President  Savage  delivered  the  follow- 
ing address  : 

Gentlemen  of  the  National  Fraternal  Congress,  and  Brothers  : 
Permit  me  to  congratulate  you  on  this  assembling  in 
fourth  annual  session  in  the  capital  of  our  country.  Rep- 
resentatives of  those  benevolent  and  fraternal  organiza- 
tions scattered  all  over  our  land  which  to-day  are  doing 
more  than  all  other  organizations  combined  in  practical 
ways  to  succor  the  helpless,  to  relieve  the  distressed,  and 
to  ameliorate  the  sufferings  of  humanity,  whose  beneficent 
work  has,  within  the  last  quarter  of  a  century,  demon- 
strated anew  the  fact  that  human  invention  ever  keeps 
^  pace  with  human  need,  and  whose  fraternal  precepts  and 
loving  deeds  have  leaped  over  sectional  lines  and  gathered 
citizens  of  far  distant  states  into  great  brotherhoods  ;  it 
is  well  that  we  gather  beneath  those  walls  in  which  find 
expression  the  wisdom  and  eloquence  of  our  greatest 
statesmen,  jurists,  and  orators. 

The  year  just  closed  has  been  one  of  general  prosperity 
to  the  fraternal  beneficiary  societies  who  constitute  this 
congress.     We    have    increased   in    numbers   and  in 


56 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


strength.  As  the  years  go  by,  and  as  we  learn  their  les- 
sons and  profit  by  their  experiences,  we  become  more 
firmly  anchored  in  the  hearts  of  the  people,  and  never 
has  there  been  a  day  when  the  fraternal  beneficial  system 
had  so  strong  a  hold  in  the  confidence  and  good  judgment 
of  the  members  of  the  orders  as  to-day.  It  is  well  for  us, 
before  beginning  the  labors  of  our  session,  to  turn  our 
eyes  backward  over  the  path  upon  which  w^e  have  traveled. 
I  do  not  know  that  history  records  any  instance  of  so 
marvelous  a  development  of  a  charitable,  or  human,  or 
social  principle  so  far-reaching  in  its  efi'ects  as  that  em- 
bodied in  the  constitutions  of  the  fraternal  orders.  Citi- 
zens divided  in  interests,  separated  b}^  locality,  of  every 
tenet  in  religion  and  every  shade  of  political  conviction, 
unknown  to  each  other,  when  enlisted  under  the  white 
banner  of  charity  and  drawn  to  each  other  by  the  bonds 
of  fraternity,  become  brothers  in  spirit  and  in  deed, 
giving  of  their  substance  as  well  as  of  their  sympathy  to 
those  upon  whom  want  has  fallen  and  upon  whose  path- 
way the  shadow  of  misfortune  is  resting. 

We  began  in  darkness,  but  evermore  our  paths  have 
been  tending  toward  the  light.  We  began  in  ignorance  ; 
we  have  learned  wisdom  by  sharp  and  profitable  experi- 
ence. We  had  no  place  either  upon  statute-book  or  in 
the  decisions  of  the  courts.  No  more  had  we  any  recog- 
nized position  among  the  varied  social  forces  which  sur- 
round and  control  mankind.  Courts  looked  upon  us  with 
disparagement ;  legislatures  with  suspicion  ;  and  society 
as  the  latest  Utopian  experiment  devised  by  idealists,  per- 
chance to  live,  and  living  to  die,  marking  one  more  of  the 
failures  of  enthusiastic  and  unwise  men  whose  hearts  felt 
more  grandly  than  their  eyes  were  permitted  to  see  wisely. 
But  by  patience  and  intelligence,  and  steadfastly  continu- 
ing in  good  works,  all  this  has  been  changed.  Old  prin- 
ciples of  jurisprudence  have  been  adapted  to  this  modern 
beneficiary  device,  and  the  judicial  conception  of  fraternal 


1.   Dr.  T.  L.  Potter,  Head  Physician,  Ackley,  Iowa. 

2.   Dr.  Frank  Swallow,  Head  Physician,  Valley  Falls,  Kas. 

3.    Dr.  C.  a.  McCollom,  Head  Physician,  Minneapolis,  Minn. 


1 


j 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


57 


beneficiary  work  is  fast  crystalizing  into  permanent  form, 
and  it  is  hailed  with  pleasure  that  as  our  works  are  be- 
coming better  known  among  men,  and  as  from  time  to 
time  judges,  some  of  whom  have  been  members  of  these 
orders  and  have  become  personally  and  practically  ac- 
quainted with  our  aims  and  objects,  have  declared  those 
purposes  from  the  bench  ;  judicial  utterance  has  tended  to 
confirm  us  in  our  work,  and  to  recognize  and  declare  the 
many  important  distinctions  which  exist  between  fraternal 
benefit  societies  and  business  insurance  corporations. 
One  after  another  the  legislatures  of  the  several  states, 
when  asked  by  the  societies,  have  written  upon  their 
statute-books  laws  w^hich  are  as  well  a  safeguard  to  their 
people  as  a  recognition  of  us  and  a  protection  to  us. 
And  the  great  heart  of  the  masses  of  our  fellow-citizens 
is  every  year  becoming  more  and  more  moved  with 
wonder  and  approval  as  we  manifest  our  suitableness  to 
the  nineteenth  century  civilization. 

Our  existence  is  no  accident,  nor  is  it  any  mere  inven- 
tion of  man.  In  God's  great  plan  for  the  uplifting  of 
mankind  through  the  ages  to  the  splendor  of  human  per- 
fection there  are  no  accidents.  These  societies  are  rather 
the  natural  outgrowth  of  this  century,  and  they  burst 
forth  into  existence  because  the  time  was  ripe  for  them. 

Never  before  under  the  social  and  political  conditions 
existing  would  it  have  been  possible  to  have  united  the 
men  of  the  difi'erent  sections  of  our  country  in  one  com- 
mon society,  whose  foundation-stone  is  practical  fraternity. 
Stirred  by  prejudice  and  by  passion,  separated  by  in- 
terminable distances  and  formidable  natural  obstacles, 
not  always  having  kindly  sympathies  one  with  another, 
but  sometimes  rather  moved  to  hate  than  to  love  ;  before 
the  railroad,  the  telegraph,  and  telephone  had  annihilated 
space  as  well  as  time,  men  failed  to  look  beyond  the  nar- 
row surroundings  of  their  own  lives,  either  to  seek  or  to 
offer  help.    When  for  the  first  time  the  people  of  the 


58 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


various  sections  of  our  country  began  to  recognize  that 
citizenship  was  not  sectional,  and  that  manhood  was 
national  and  universal  ;  when  the  Atlantic  was  joined  to 
the  Pacific  by  bands  of  iron  and  steel ;  when  the  north 
and  south  were  beginning  to  break  through  the  barriers 
of  bitterness  and  woe,  then  sprang  up  from  the  earth, 
full  armed,  this  giant  of  beneficence. 

To-day,  after  a  little  more  than  twenty-five  years,  at 
least  one  in  forty  of  all  the  population  of  our  country, 
including  men,  w^omen,  and  children,  are  members  of 
some  one  or  more  of  these  societies,  and  at  least  one  in 
ten  are  their  beneficiaries.  Should  one  ask  me  whether 
such  a  plan,  built  upon  such  a  foundation,  was  liable  to 
endure,  my  first  answer  would  be,  nothing  in  this  gene- 
ration can  fail  which  meets  so  perfectly  the  common 
wants  of  a  common  people."  This  is  not  the  time  for  a 
discussion  of  the  theory  of  organized  fraternal  bene- 
ficence. That  we  have  assembled  here  in  this  congress 
is  the  evidence  and  proof  of  our  convictions.  Before  us 
is  the  problem  :  How  may  we  best  improve,  amend, 
and  modify  the  details  of  our  work  and  put  into  practical 
shape  and  operation  the  lessons  learned  in  the  school  of 
experience  ?  "  Each  year  brings  new  lessons  by  which 
we  may  profit.  We  are  just  beginning  to  turn  the  light 
of  philosophy  upon  our  plans,  and  to  tabulate,  to  analyze 
and  compare.  Vital  statistics  are  gradually  becoming 
more  and  more  important  to  us,  and  we  are  learning  to 
rely  less  upon  wild,  impetuous,  unregulated  impulse, 
either  for  sustaining  existence  or  promoting  growth,  and 
more  upon  methodic,  philosophical,  and  wisely-directed 
efforts. 

We  come  into  sharp  competition  with  the  old  line  " 
insurance  companies.  We  come  into  competition  with 
the  open  assessment  associations,  which  have  taken  in 
part  our  form,  but  have  left  our  substance.  We  come 
into  competition  with  orders  which  claim  to  be  allied  to 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


59 


us,  but  have  neither  our  form  nor  our  substance.  But  our 
field  is  peculiarly  our  own,  never  to  be  successfully  in- 
vaded by  any  competitor  so  long  as  the  warfare  we  wage 
is  only  for  the  widow  and  the  orphan,  and  not  to  promote 
selfish,  temporal  interests.  Let  benevolence,  and  not 
gain,  be  our  corner-stone,  and  our  building  shall  stand 
immortal,  eternal.  I  believe  we  can  in  no  way  so  well  do 
ourselves  and  our  societies  the  most  good  as  by  declaring 
in  the  most  emphatic  manner  our  belief  in  the  old  ^Hand- 
marks."  Let  us  stand  steadfast,  where  this  congress  has 
always  stood,  extending  the  right-hand  of  fellowship  to 
those  who  build  upon  such  a  foundation  as  we  have  built 
upon.  The  most  exalted  form  of  fraternal  benevolence 
is  that  exemplified  by  men  who  gather  round  a  common 
altar  and  take  upon  themselves  a  sacred  vow  to  be  faith- 
ful unto  death  to  the  loved  ones,  to  care  for  the  widow,  to 
lift  up  the  orphan,  and  relieve  the  sick  and  the  distressed, 
and  never  to  make  even  the  form  of  fraternity  a  pretense 
for  personal  gain. 

I  also  congratulate  you  upon  the  fact  that  after  these 
many  years  merit  and  not  cheapness  is  becoming  the 
criterion  of  excellence  by  which  fraternal  societies  are 
judged. 

I  think  this  congress  should  adopt  some  more  sys- 
tematic and  efficient  method  of  making  its  influence  felt 
n  legislative  halls  when  legislation,  either  favorable  or- 
adverse,  is  under  consideration.  Notably,  in  two  or  three 
states  this  last  year  dangerous,  if  not  hostile,  laws  have 
ibeen  enacted  w^hich  might  have  been  defeated  by  con 
certed  action.  We  cannot  be  too  vigilant.  There  should 
be  a  sentinel  upon  every  out-post,  and  the  entire  army, 
when  it  sleeps,  should  sleep  upon  its  arms. 

Surely  the  voice  of  a  million  and  a  half  of  men  and 
women,  uttered  with  force  and  authority,  cannot  fail  to 
be  heard  and  heeded  by  the  most  obdurate  of  legislators. 


60 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


Report  of  the  Committee  on  Good 
of  the  Orders, 


At  the  fourth  annual  session  of  the  National  Fraternal 
Congress,  held  at  Washington,  D.  C,  November,  1890, 
the  Committee  on  the  Good  of  the  Orders  made  the  fol- 
lowing report  : 

To  the  National  Fraternal  Congress  : 

Brothers  :  Your  Committee  on  Statistics  and  the 
Welfare  of  the  Orders  fraternally  present  the  following  : 

We  find  in  the  statistics  of  fraternal  insurance  or- 
ganizations, as  compiled  from  sworn  reports  for  1890, 
made  to  insurance  departments,  the  following  interesting 
figures  : 

Eighty-four  fraternal  societies  reported  1,085,771  cer- 
tificates in  force,  w^ith  a  risk  of  $1,296,104,142,  with  lia- 
bilities of  $1,589,272,  and  assets  of  $3,042,296.  This  is 
a  gain  in  five  years  of  304,340  certificates.  Contrasted 
to  this,  we  find  at  the  close  of  1890  that  our  old  line 
friends  had  a  risk  of  $3,542,955,751,  with  a  liability  of 
$664,489,398,  and  assets  of  $753,228,759.  The  figures  of 
the  old  line  friends  cover  all  the  classes  of  policies  issued 
by  them,  and  it  is  impossible  to  separate  from  this  vast 
array  of  numerals  that  portion  which  represents  simple 
life  insurance  and  that  portion  which  represents  endow- 
ments and  other  investments. 

The  fraternal  organizations  have  every  reason  to  be 
proud  of  the  position  they  have  attained  and  the  respect 
and  confidence  of  the  community  that  is  shown  by  their 
numerical  strength.  The  volume  of  business  transacted 
by  us  is  constantly  increasing,  and  we  believe  that  our 
system  represents  a  benefit  more  directly  conferred  upon 
humanity  and  productive  of  results  of  greater  advantage 
to  the  state,  to  the  community,  and  to  the  individual 
than  any  system  of  co-operation  ever  heretofore  devised. 


The  Woodman's  Hand- Booh. 


61 


If  it  were  possible  to  follow  in  the  homes  that  have 
been  darkened  by  grief,  to  the  firesides  that  have  been 
dimmed  with  the  sorrow  of  bereavement,  and  if  we  could 
trace  to  their  ultimate  ends  the  opportunities  that  have 
been  opened  to  the  despairing  through  the  operation  of 
our  benefit  features  and  the  exercise  of  that  fraternity 
which  constitutes  the  corner-stone  of  our  organizations, 
we  could  lay  before  the  world  a  history  that  would  chal- 
lenge the  admiration  of  the  philanthropist  and  excite 
the  wonder  of  the  economist.  The  advent  of  the  first 
fraternal  benefit  organization,  starting  as  it  did,  with  no 
history  behind  it  and  with  only  hope  before,  offering  to 
do  that  which  seemed  almost  impossible  of  accomplish- 
ment, without  capital  other  than  the  assumption  that  the 
fraternity  which  began  its  development  in  the  Garden  of 
Eden  so  permeated  humanity  as  to  make  it  possible  to 
systematize  it,  and  make  it  a  powerful  engine  for  the 
education  and  elevation  of  mankind  ;  starting  out  imma- 
ture, with  much  of  indirection,  apparently  groping  its 
way  toward  a  desired  goal,  all  together  formed  a  pros- 
pectus which  to  the  minds  of  many  seemed  chimerical. 
Criticism  of  the  severest  kind  met  our  venture  at  the  out- 
set. Prejudices  were  appealed  to,  and  every  means  was 
taken  by  some  of  our  opponents  to  check  our  growth  and 
hasten  our  downfall.  And  if  you  and  I  had  been  told 
twenty  years  ago  that  fraternal  insurance  in  the  short 
space  of  time  that  has  intervened  would  have  achieved 
the  wonderful  success  we  meet  to-day  to  celebrate,  like 
doubting  Thomas  of  old,  we  would  have  asked  for  positive 
evidence  before  giving  to  the  bold  prospectus  even  a  cold 
assent. 

We  have  not  only  deserved  success,  we  have  done  more, 
we  have  won  it,  and  it  behooves  us  to  so  direct  and  manage 
our  affairs  that  we  shall  maintain  it  for  all  the  ye.ars  to 
come.  To  do  this  it  is  absolutely  necessary  that  the 
membership  of  our  orders  be  educated  not  only  to  a 


62 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


thorough  appreciation  of  the  benefits  derived  from  but 
that  their  appreciation  of  their  duties  to  our  institutions 
should  be  increased.  Whatever  may  be  the  condition  of 
our  orders,  whether  they  be  maintained  at  the  present 
high  standard,  whether  they  be  increased  in  their  mag- 
nitude, or  whether  they  are  to  suffer  from  laxity  and 
from  depression  —  whatever  the  condition  may  be,  the 
responsibility  cannot  be  divided.  It  rests  with  equal 
weight  upon  the  shoulders  of  those  who  have  been  se- 
lected to  fill  the  highest  office  and  upon  the  shoulders  of 
him  who  occupies  the  seemingly  least  important  position 
in  the  fraternity,  and  without  the  active  co-operation  of 
all,  without  united  effort  and  united  participation  in  the 
work  that  must  be  done,  we  shall  fall  short  of  our  ideal 
and  be  unable  to  improve  all  the  opportunities  that  are 
contained  in  the  plan  of  co-operative  fraternal  insurance. 

A  membership  of  one  million  imbued  with  the  en- 
thusiasm that  should  be  kindled  by  a  knowledge  of  the 
good  that  can  be  done  would  be  an  army  of  active,  in- 
telligent workers,  which  in  a  very  few  years  would  place 
nearly  all  the  business  that  is  now  known  as  straight  life 
insurance  within  co-operative  institutions  of  our  kind  ; 
and  it  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  the  year  1900  would 
witness  an  immense  roll  of  fraternal  orders  paying  out  to 
the  families  of  departed  brothers  an  amount  larger  by 
far  than  the  amounts  now  paid  by  all  the  insurance 
systems  in  existence,  and  at  a  cost  far  below  the  minimum 
of  to-day. 

While  we  are  fraternal,  and  while  we  truly  believe  that 
fraternity  is  our  corner-stone,  our  watch-word,  and  our 
strength,  yet  it  is  essential  that  the  business  departments 
of  the  order  shall  be  conducted  without  sentiment,  upon 
clearly-defined  lines,  and  all  the  transactions  be  in  ac- 
cordance with  well-defined  and  explicit  laws.  Business 
and  sentiment  will  not  successfully  mix,  and  that  all  may 
have  due  protection  and  the  rights  of  every  individual  be 


T/ie  Woodman's  Hand-Book, 


63 


strictly  upheld,  such  laws  as  are  necessary  for  the  proper 
conduct  of  affairs  must  be  observed  in  every  department. 

One  of  the  problems  with  which  we  are  confronted  is 
how  to  overcome  the  indifference  of  the  general  member- 
ship—  how  to  infuse  them  with  enthusiasm,  how  to 
develop  the  spirit  of  fraternity  which  so  many  seem  to 
lack,  and  the  absence  of  which  keeps  our  council  cham- 
bers almost  naked.  There  are  too  many  who  believe 
their  whole  duty  discharged  when  their  financial  obliga- 
tions are  met,  and  who  are  willing  that  the  few  should  do 
the  work  for  all.  If  fraternity  means  anything,  it  means 
that  we  have  no  right  to  restrict  its  benefits  to  ourselves, 
and  we  have  no  right  to  feel  that  as  we  have  secured  the 
future  of  our  loved  ones  we  have  no  further  to  go,  and 
that  we  have  discharged  by  this  act  of  self-protection  our 
full  duty  to  the  human  family.  The  fraternity  which 
makes  life  worth  living  is  the  kind  that  goes  out  into  the 
highways  and  byways  and  invites  our  fellows  to  the  feast 
that  has  been  prepared,  and  true  fraternity  will  not  rest 
until  all  who  are  worthy  have  been  brought  under  its 
protecting  influence. 

As  business  men  we  should  look  to  the  personnel  of 
those  whom  we  invite  ;  the  physical  characteristics  are 
of  no  more  importance  than  the  moral,  and  the  man  who, 
though  in  the  enjoyment  of  perfect  physical  health,  with 
an  inherited  prospect  of  longevity,  is  unbalanced  by 
moral  integrity  is  as  unfit  a  candidate  as  the  man  who 
carries  through  life  the  heavy  burden  of  inherited  or 
acquired  severe  physical  disability.  The  habits  of  those 
who  attempt  to  come  with  us  should  be  as  rigidly  scruti- 
nized as  should  be  their  physical  condition,  and  he  who 
wilfully  does  that  which  will  impair  his  life  or  tend  to 
lessen  his  usefulness  to  the  order  or  to  the  community 
should  be  refused  admission  to  our  ranks,  and  those  who 
join  us  should  be  held  to  accountability  for  their  conduct 
while  they  remain. 


64      '  The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


Your  committee  believe  it  is  within  the  power  of  the 
legislative  bodies  of  our  orders  to  declare  what  shall  —  at 
least  what  shall  not  be  —  the  meeting  places  of  our  sub- 
ordinate bodies.  We  believe  that  the  assembly  chambers 
should  be  so  situated  that  the  surroundings  will  place  no 
temptations  in  the  way  of  the  member,  be  he  young  or 
old.  The  environment  that  induces  men  to  put  into 
their  mouths  that  which  will  steal  away  their  brains 
should  be  prescribed,  and  we  have  no  right  to  ask  our 
associates  to  meet  in  places  where  the  path  leads  through 
temptation  and  disgrace.  We  believe  there  is  no  right, 
expressed  or  implied,  to  increase  the  hazard  after  mem- 
bership has  been  obtained,  and  the  fair  presumption 
when  application  for  membership  is  granted  is  that  the 
condition  of  the  applicant  at  the  time  he  becomes  a 
member  will,  as  far  as  lies  in  his  power,  be  maintained. 
Where  this  is  not  done,  as  we  find  voluntary  acts  are  in- 
creasing the  risks  far  beyond  what  it  was  at  the  date  of 
acceptance  of  the  petition  for  membership,  we  believe  it 
is  due  to  the  institution  from  which  we  expect  so  much 
that  the  corrective  forces  of  the  order  should  be  brought 
into  play,  and  the  evil  be  remedied  either  by  persuasion 
or,  where  this  fails,  by  expulsion.  It  is  clear  that  the 
habit  we  have  most  in  mind  is  the  excessive  use  of  in- 
toxicants, and  we  are  convinced  that  this  one  thing  has 
done  as  much  to  hurt  fraternal  societies  as  many  other 
causes  combined. 

It  is  not  expected  that  we  can  prevent  physical  de- 
generation or  check  the  ills  that  follow  in  the  wake  of 
fleeting  time.  Men  are  born  to  live,  to  suffer,  and  decay. 
Our  orders  get  their  strength  from  the  self-respecting  and 
the  law-abiding,  and  our  continuance  depends  upon  the 
support  of  this  element  of  our  people.  To  successfully 
appeal  to  this  class  of  the  community  we  must  go  to  them 
with  a  record  which  shall  be  ever  fair,  and  to  keep  it 
clear  we  must  purge  out  that  which  is  noxious  and 


lite  Woodman's  Ha  ad-Book. 


65 


daugeroiTs.  If  those  whose  habits  have  deprived  them 
of  general  respect  seek  our  asykim,  our  own  self-respect 
and  respect  for  those  whom  we  are  seeking  should  act  as 
an  insurmountable  barrier  to  their  admission  ;  and  if 
this  be  true,  it  follows  there  should  be  a  remedy  applied 
to  those  Avho,  having  gained  admittance,  abuse  their 
privileges,  violate  their  obligations,  and  bring  upon  our 
orders  a  hazard  which  fraternity  was  never  intended  to 
accept. 

It  is  not  expected,  nor  is  it  necessary,  that  our  orders 
shall  become  total  abstinence  societies,  but  the  man  who 
voluntarily  becomes  untrue  to  his  obligations  and  wilfully 
shortens  the  probability  of  his  life  is  doing  the  orders 
such  injury  as  can  only  be  prevented  or  repaired  by 
stringent  measures  on  the  part  of  those  with  whom  he  is 
associated. 

Too  many  are  apt  to  look  with  leniency  upon  this 
question  of  the  use  of  intoxicants,  and  the  statement  is 
sometimes  made  that  to  exercise  the  right  of  purification 
wotild  be  a  hardship,  would  create  harsh  criticisms,  and 
would  bring  fraternal  societies  into  disrepute.  T\'e  believe 
the  opposite  is  true,  and  that  if  it  became  known  that  we 
protected  ourselves  from  the  evils  that  are  within,  at  the 
same  time  using  the  utmost  vigilance  against  the  evils 
that  are  without,  it  would  strengthen  us,  and  would  be  of 
great  advantage  in  seeking  new  memberships  from  a 
self-respecting  and  properly  constituted  general  public. 

How  shall  we  get  down  to  the  hearts  of  those  of  our 
members  who,  having  secured  their  initiation,  are  never 
after  seen  in  the  lodge-rooms,  and  who  manifest  com2~)lete 
fraternal  indifference.  The  noblest  sentiments,  the  most 
fervid  eloquence,  the  wisest  laws  r;^ay  be  imperishably 
graven  between  the  covers  of  our  books,  and  elegantly 
bound  copies  may  adorn  the  home  of  the  indifferent,  but 
their  value  to  him  or  the  order  he  claims  is  less  than  the 
benefit  to  be  derived  by  an  invalid  from  a  lost  prescrip- 

5 


66 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


Hon.  These  are  not  members  for  fraternity  sake,  but 
they  remain  because  here  they  get  what  is  not  to  be  got 
elsewhere  at  half  price,  building  on  the  hope  that  others 
will  do  the  work  and  carry  all  their  burdens.  It  is  not 
fair  that  the  careless  and  inactive  should  have  all  the 
great  advantages  that  are  created  by  the  workers.  Those 
who  till  the  soil,  who  plant  the  seed,  who  nurse  the  crop 
to  full  maturity,  and  Avork  all  through  the  harvest,  should 
get  their  reward,  and  others  should  not  criticise  or  be 
dissatisfied. 

Briefly,  the  welfare  of  our  orders  is  only  to  be  secured 
by  and  through  the  help  of  the  members  of  the  subor- 
dinate councils,  the  enactment  of  wise  laws  and  their 
careful  observance.  When  our  army  of  a  million  mem- 
bers are  brought  to  a  realizing  sense  of  their  obligation 
and  their  duty  we  will  witness  a  growth  and  an  increase 
of  strength  in  every  feature  of  fraternal  beneficiary 
orders  that  will  surpass  the  highest  hopes  of  our  most 
ardent  well-wishers. 

Enoch  S.  Brown,  ) 

W.  0.  RoBsoN,      >  Committee, 

B.  F.  Nelson,  ) 


Government  of  Co-operative  Companies. 


The  fundamental  principle  of  co-operative  insurance  is 
mutuality.  Classification  into  assessment  and  fixed 
premium  companies  is  another  affair,  proceeding  on  the 
basis  of  modes  of  collecting  the  contributions  for  the  pay- 
ment of  death  claims.  But  the  principle  of  mutuality 
divides  companies  into  co-operative  and  proprietary,  ac- 
cording as  the  society  is  managed  solely  in  the  interest  of 
the  insured  or  primarily  in  the  interest  of  certain  others. 
All  companies  organized  under  the  assessment  laws,  and 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


67 


all  companies  doing  an  assessment  business,  with  one  or 
two  exceptions,  are  nominally  co-operative,  as  is  also  a 
considerable  number  of  the  regular  companies.  The  idea 
of  mutuality  is  that  each  is  equally  or  proportionately 
interested  in  the  company  through  his  insurance  therein, 
and  that  there  is  no  other  interest,  and  certainly  no  in- 
terest superior  to  that  of  policy-holder.  Common  sense 
dictates  that  the  control  be  vested  in  the  parties  interested, 
who  in  such  a  case  comprise  the  entire  membership. 
This  is  nominally  accorded  in  every  co-operative  com- 
pany. For  the  proper  government  of  such  a  company, 
then,  it  remains  only  to  devise  methods  by  which  the  will 
of  the  members  ma}^  be  definitely  ascertained  and  reg- 
istered, and  to  see  that  it  is  executed. 

But  this  is  just  what  is  by  all  possible  means  avoided 
in  a  large  number  of  institutions.  The  attitude  of  those 
who  are  temporarily  in  possession  of  executive  powers  is 
expressive  of  the  idea  that  the  members  do  not  knoAV 
wdiat  is  to  their  interests,  are  not  to  be  trusted  to  choose 
for  themselves,  and  consequently  must  be  cajoled  by  a 
mere  pretense  of  popular  government.  It  is  considered 
a  wise  business  practice  to  place  such  restraints  and 
hindrances  in  the  way  of  the  expression  of  the  will  of 
the  members  that  in  practice  it  will  not  be  possible  for 
them  to  enunciate  it.  Among  these  checks  is  the  system 
of  requiring  them  to  meet  in  person  at  a  certain  place  on 
a  certain  day  to  vote  —  a  thing  which  is  plainly  impractic- 
able when  the  members  are  scattered  throughout  the 
country.  But  since  even  this  plan  might  admit  of  too 
strong  an  expression  of  the  will  of  some  members  who 
by  reason  of  their  propinquity  know  a  deal  about  the 
management,  a  proxy  system  is  added  ostensibly  as  a 
measure  of  fairness  to  those  wdio  are  unable  to  attend  in 
person.  This  system  is  borrowed  from  stock  corporations, 
wherein  it  has  proven  also  a  very  bad  mode  of  govern- 
ment and  a  convenient  tool  for  conspiring  cliques  of 


68 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Bo jk. 


speculators.  Yet  in  such  companies  it  ought  to  work 
much  more  equitably  than  in  a  co-operative  organization, 
because  the  number  of  voters  is  not  likely  to  be  so  great, 
and  also  because  the  business  is  conducted  only  for  profits 
made  by  transactions  with  outsiders,  while  in  mutual 
companies  the  question  is  merely  one  of  equitable  and 
economical  distribution.  In  insurance  companies  the 
proxy  system  makes  the  executive  officers  autocrats,  be- 
cause they  alone  have  the  power  and  opportunity  to  obtain 
large  numbers  of  proxies.  It  is  notorious  that  these  men 
often  assume  the  airs  of  more  complete  ownership  of  the 
companies  over  which  they  preside  than  do  the  real  own- 
ers of  proprietary  companies.  To  endeavor  to  disturb  or 
modify  their  supreme  control  is  treason.  It  would  take  a 
mandamus  and  a  force  of  constables  to  compel  one  of 
these  magnates  to  permit  such  access  to  the  books  of  his 
company  as  would  enable  another  who  was  not  to  his  taste 
to  merely  announce  his  candidacy  to  the  members  and 
solicit  their  votes  or  proxies. 

Such  popular  government  is  a  farce,  and  is  everywhere 
understood  to  be  a  farce  ;  but  its  results  are  never  mat- 
ters for  laughter,  and  often  for  lamentations.  The  grip 
of  these  men  upon  what  they  esteem  their  companies  is 
not  even  loosened  when  by  their  mismanagement  the  in- 
stitutions have  been  brought  to  tlie  brink  of  ruin.  It  is 
still  trading  stock  "  upon  which  they  can  drive  a  shrewd 
bargain  for  reinsurance  at  a  profit  to  themselves,  what- 
ever may  be  the  result  of  the  deal  to  the  members.  In  a 
company  which  is  truly  mutual,  in  which  the  members 
are  not  denied  a  voice,  coming  upon  difficulties  would  call 
for  conference  of  representatives  of  the  members  who 
would  endeavor  to  find  some  solution  of  the  trouble  which 
would  avert  disaster.  Instead,  we  usually  see  the  very 
persons  who  by  their  folly  or  criminality  caused  the  im- 
pending ruin  still  entrenched  behind  their  proxies,  brazen 
and  impenitent,  calmly  demanding  their  pound  of  flesh 


The  Woodman'' s  Hand-Boolc. 


69 


before  the  welfare  of  the  members  can  be  looked  after. 
The  pos-ition  of  members  at  such  a  time  seems  to  be 
merely  that  of  dumb  cattle,  to  be  sold  and  delivered  with- 
out a  word  to  say  about  it.  Members  so  construe  the 
situation,  as  every  reinsuring  company  has  found  to  its 
sorrow  ;  they  resent  it,  and  in  many  cases  refuse  to  re- 
main, regardless  of  the  advantages  offered.  There  is  a 
company  to-day  seeking  reinsurance  whose  original 
owner  "  disposed  of  his  interest  betimes,  turning  over 
his  proxies  to  a  speculator  who  now  stands  at  the  door 
with  itching  palms,  refusing  to  permit  the  interests  of  the 
policy-holders  to  be  considered  until  he  is  taken  care  of. 
Not  so  very  long  ago,  in  the  winding  up  of  a  certain  com- 
pany, the  person  whose  mismanagement  had  brought  the 
company  to  the  verge  of  ruin  held  his  position  in  spite 
of  a  storm  of  protests,  and,  since  it  became  impossible  for 
him  to  feather  his  own  nest  by  reason  of  the  commotion, 
after  many  negotiations  succeeded  in  preventing  anything 
being  done  for  the  policy-holders.  Yet  he  was  modest, 
for  he  only  demanded  one  dollar  for  himself  for  every  two 
given  the  members,  as  a  reward  for  having  destroyed  the 
company.  If  this  were  not  forthcoming,  nothing  could  be 
done. 

Such  occurrences  are  not  uncommon  ;  there  is  rarely  a 
failure  vrhich  is  not  accompanied  by  just  such  proceedings 
on  the  part  of  the  very  persons  who  are  responsible  for 
the  difficulties.  And  success  is  often  almost  as  disastrous 
to  the  original  members  as  failure  ;  the  lack  of  considera- 
tion on  the  part  of  managers  for  the  rights  of  members 
is  notorious.  Does  any  one  suppose  that  inequitable, 
tricky  policy  conditions  would  continue  for  a  moment  if 
the  members  were  given  an  opportunity  to  say  what 
should  be  ?  Does  an}^  sane  man  suppose  that  that  relic 
of  barbaric  days,  the  warranty,  would  remain  in  applica- 
tions if  members  were  taught  its  significance  and  could 
by  vote  remove  it  ?    Does  any  reasonable  person  believe 


70 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


that  unfair  and  dangerous  modes  of  apportioning  losses 
would  be  tamely  submitted  to  if  members  could  know 
the  facts  and  remedy  them  ?  Or  that  robbery  of  retiring 
members  w^ould  continue  to  be  a  distinguishing  feature  of 
American  life  insurance  ?  Or  that  a  company  would  be 
forced  to  the  wall  without  a  careful  examination  into  its 
affairs  by  a  committee  of  the  members  with  expert  as- 
sistance, with  a  view  to  remedy  the  situation  and  to  bring 
the  culpable  persons  to  justice,  instead  of  leaving  them 
free  to  trade  on  the  ruins  ?  It  is  incredible  that  if  af- 
forded a  free  opportunity  to  express  their  will  the  mem- 
bers would  not  manage  better  than  do  their  self-consti- 
tuted masters  at  this  writing.  But  suppose  they  do  not  ? 
Then  mutual  insurance  is  a  failure,  and  should  be  so  con- 
fessed ;  and  they  who  are  to  be  proprietors  should  furnish 
the  capital  required  of  proprietors,  assume  the  obligations 
of  proprietors,  and  cease  to  sail  under  a  false  flag.  In 
mutual  companies  the  members  have  a  right  to  rule  ; 
rule  they  ill  or  rule  they  well,  they  have  the  right  to  rule. 
They  alone  lose  by  their  ill  success  or  profit  by  their  suc- 
cess ;  it  is  not  a  matter  of  importance  to  any  one  else 
whether  they  succeed  or  fail. 

It  is  commonly  urged  against  allowing  the  unrestricted 
control  of  the  members,  that  insurance  is  a  business 
matter,  that  the  members  are  ignorant,  that  they  are  flckle 
and  variable.  It  is  true  that  insurance  is  a  business 
matter  —  their  business,  and  nobody's  else  —  to  manage 
what  is  their  right.  It  is  true  that  members  know  little 
of  the  business  —  if  they  know  less  than  many  managers 
of  companies,  regular  as  well  as  assessment,  God  help 
their  ignorance  ! — but  they  must  be  taught,  and  they 
will  be  found  willing  to  be  taught  and  willing  to  trust 
those  who  are  able  to  instruct  them,  and  who  faithfully 
serve  them.  It  is  not  true  that  in  such  matters  they  are 
fickle  and  variable,  that  they  are  likely  to  forget  those 
who  serve  them  well ;  but  it  is  true  that  they  are  likely 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh.  7i 

to  throw  off  their  shoulders  men  who  seek  to  turn  their 
offices  into  sinecures  or  to  plunder  the  interests  in  their 
charge.  And  there  is  the  rub  ;  that  is  the  true  reason  of 
the  distrust  of  popular  control. 

Let  us  turn  to  facts.  The  nearest  approach  to  popular 
control  in  the  insurance  societies  of  this  country  is  found 
in  the  fraternities  which  make  use  of  the  representative 
system.  It  is  true  that  these  organizations  ha^ve  not  as 
yet  evolved  very  far  from  primitive  methods  of  transact- 
ing business,  though  there  are  creditable  exceptions  to 
this  rule.  But  in  the  matter  of  economically  conducting 
their  business  along  the  simple  lines  which  they  have 
adopted,  these  organizations  are  easily  first  among  all 
companies.  The  United  Workmen  find  it  possible  to 
carry  on  the  affairs  of  a  society  embracing  almost  four 
hundred  thousand  members  at  a  cost  of  but  75  ceuts  per 
$1,000  insured.  Even  in  this  order,  which  is  now  more 
than  a  quarter  of  a  century  old,  there  has  as  yet  been  no 
absolute  necessity  for  the  adoption  of  methods  of  appor- 
tioning losses  more  equitable  and  scientific  than  the 
method  of  uniform  assessment.  Granted  the  means  of 
so  doing,  however,  there  is  to  my  mind  no  doubt  that 
Mpon  occasion  the}^  will  rectify  all  errors,  for  there  are  no 
interests  to  serve  but  those  of  members.  In  all  the  his- 
tory of  the  fraternities  there  is  not  a  shred  of  evidence 
that  the  system  of  government  leads  to  unstable  manage- 
ment ;  on  the  contrary,  trustworthy  executives  are  com- 
monly continued  in  office  so  long  as  they  wish  to  remain. 
But  their  emoluments  are  usually  kept  at  a  reasonable 
figure,  and  any  proof  of  a  tendency  to  plunder  is  likely  to 
result  disastrously,  not  for  the  members,  as  in  proxy- 
.    governed  institutions,  but  for  the  plunderers. 

The  same  situation  is  found  to  obtain  in  the  great 
Australian  regular  mutual  company,  where  the  members' 
control  is  even  more  direct  ;  it  is  also  found  that  the 
people,  being  given  the  opportunity,  take  delight  in  iidu- 


72 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


eating  themselves  in  insurance,  with  the  result  that  no 
institutions  have  arisen  in  that  country  doing  business 
upon  unsafe  plans.  But  their  actuaries  are  men  of 
science,  devoted  to  their  science,  and  not  to  the  interests 
of  manager-ridden  companies  ;  and  in  consequence,  as 
they  are  a  class  worthy  of  popular  confidence,  they  pos- 
sess it,  and  the  affairs  of  mutual  companies  are  directed 
by  their  skill.  In  Great  Britain,  on  the  contrary,  there 
was  originally  the  same  gulf  between  companies  and 
popular  societies  as  in  this  country  ;  but  the  control  of 
such  societies  has  been  singularly  stable,  the  chief  active 
officers  of  the  Manchester  Unity  of  Odd  Fellows  and  of 
the  Foresters  literally  spending  their  lives  in  the  harness, 
and  being  honored  by  everybod3^  These  same  societies 
were  the  first  of  the  popular  organizations  to  reform 
their  methods  and  conform  to  scientific  principles,  led  by 
the  two  officers  referred  to.  The  societies  of  importance 
which  have  made  no  move  in  that  direction  are  for  the 
most  part  proxy-ridden  institutions.  As  for  success  in 
business  management,  the  affiliated  friendly  societies 
possess  funds  in  excess  of  $50,000,000,  and  are  by  far 
the  most  successful  organizations  in  England.  Although 
for  a  long  time  unprotected  by  law  from  embezzlement, 
loss  of  funds  has  been  very  uncommon,  and  the  economy 
of  management  is  unequalled.  Concerning  the  compara- 
tive advantages  of  this  representative  mode  of  govern- 
ment, the  chief  registrar  of  the  British  government  has 
said  :  ''The}^  can  unite  the  vigilance  of  local  manage- 
ment with  the  directing  and  correcting  influences  of  a 
central  authorit3\  The}"  afford  a  field  for  legitimate  am- 
bition, since  every  member,  by  passing  witli  credit 
through  the  various  offices  in  his  own  particular  branch, 
may  hope  to  be  elected  to  the  higher  offices  of  the  dis- 
trict and  the  central  body,  and  eventually  to  reach  the 
position  of  Grand  Master,  High  Chief  Ranger,  etc.,  of  the 
order,  the  elect  of  a  constituency  of  picked  voters,  such 


Dr.  I.  L.  Potter,  Head  Physician. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


73 


as  no  county  or  borough  member  of  the  House  of  Com- 
mons can  boast  of.  Nor  can  there  be  any  doubt  that, 
owing  to  these  and  other  advantages,  the  federate  bodies 
are  every  year  outstripping  isolated  societies  more  and 
more  in  the  race." — Miles  M.  Dawson. 


Secret  Societies. 


The  arguments  against  secret  societies  are  composed  in 
large  part  of  misunderstanding  and  misrepresentation. 
Such  organizations  are  by  no  means  dangerous,  either  to 
societies  or  individuals  ;  and  the  attempt  to  make  them 
appear  so  is  not  to  be  commended.  They  embrace  in 
their  membership  a  large  measure  of  intelligence  and 
morality,  and  their  designs  are  in  harmony  with  accepted 
principles  of  duty.  The  fact  of  their  secrecy  is  not  the 
awful  thing  that  their  enemies  represent.  It  does  not  in- 
volve any  plotting  against  the  peace  and  welfare  of  the 
community,  and  does  not  serve  to  shield  any  of  the  evils 
that  good  people  abhor  and  avoid.  The  idea  that  citizens 
of  high  standing  are  not  to  be  trusted  behind  closed 
doors  is  a  manifest  absurdity.  There  is  no  reason  to  sup- 
pose such  men  forget  the  obligations  of  honor  and  the 
rules  of  creditable  behavior  when  they  enter  a  lodge- 
room.  They  are  fairly  entitled  to  the  presumption  of 
innocence,  to  say  the  least,  and  the  mere  privacy  of  their 
proceedings  is  not  a  valid  ground  of  condemnation  under 
any  circumstances.  The  curiosity  with  regard  to  what 
they  do  and  say  is  natural,  but  it  may  easily  assume  an 
offensive  aspect  and  become  a  source  of  gross  injustice, 
notwithstanding  its  virtuous  intentions. 

It  does  not  seem  to  occur  to  the  critics  of  these  orders 
that  the  policy  of  secrecy  is  a  well  established  one  in  the 


74 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


present  system  of  civilization.  A  large  share  of  the  work 
of  adjusting  the  affairs  of  the  world  and  promoting  the 
interests  of  mankind  is  performed  with  more  or  less 
avoidance  of  publicity.  There  are  reasons  why  this 
practice  is  thus  favored  ;  it  has  advantageous  uses,  as  ex- 
perience has  demonstrated,  and  it  is  likely  to  continue 
forever.  The  senate  of  the  United  States  becomes  a 
secret  society  every  time  it  goes  into  executive  session, 
and  the  same  is  to  be  said  of  the  supreme  court  every 
time  that  it  retires  to  make  up  a  decision  in  a  case. 
There  are  times  when  religious  bodies  find  it  necessary 
or  expedient  to  conceal  their  proceedings  from  the  pub- 
lic ;  in  fact,  there  is  a  certain  degree  of  secrecy  in  all 
plans  of  church  government,  but  nobody  thinks  of  de- 
nouncing them  on  that  account.  The  secret  societies  do 
not  hide  everything  that  they  do.  Their  operations  are 
largely  open  to  popular  inspection,  and  nobody  need  be 
in  doubt  for  a  moment  as  to  their  general  objects  and 
services.  They  meet  in  secret,  and  preserve  resolute 
silence  touching  given  features  of  their  work,  but  enough 
is  revealed,  nevertheless,  to  prove  that  they  have  a  right 
to  exist  because  of  their  practical  usefulness. 

There  is  abundant  evidence  of  the  fact  that  the  bene- 
factions of  these  organizations  are  constant  and  extensive. 
They  have  reduced  the  matter  of  charity  to  a  science. 
Their  plans  of  relief  and  their  schemes  of  insurance  are 
definite  and  effective,  and  their  members  have  an  assur- 
ance of  help  that  never  fails  and  never  waits.  It  is  not 
too  much  to  say  that  their  care  for  the  needy  and  dis- 
tressed is  equal  to  that  of  the  church,  so  far  as  material 
wants  are  concerned,  and  this  entitles  them  to  generous 
consideration  from  religious  people.  They  cannot  be 
considered  very  bad  when  the  good  that  they  do  is  so 
pronounced  and  far-reaching.  This  is  the  point  that 
refutes  most  of  the  arguments  of  their  critics.  They  do 
not  pretend  to  be  spiritual  institutions,  but  they  do  teach 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


75 


doctrines  that  produce  excellent  results  from  a  moral 
point  of  view.  The  influence  they  exert  is  unquestion-  " 
ably  on  the  side  of  faithful  citizenship,  of  practical 
philanthropy,  and  of  the  sort  of  sympathy  with  mis- 
fortune that  is  none  the  less  worthy  because  it  is  not  pro- 
claimed from  the  house-tops.  They  are  not  perfect  in 
their  theories  and  methods,  we  may  readily  believe  ;  they 
have  their  shortcomings,  like  other  agencies  of  civiliza- 
tion. But  it  is  only  the  simple  truth  to  say  that  with 
all  their  delinquencies,  actual  or  imaginary,  they  are  a 
decided  benefit  to  society,  and  should  have  respect  and 
encouragement  accordingly. —  Globe-Democrat. 


Confidence, 


If  the  present  membership  of  all  the  fraternal  insur- 
ance societies  w^ere  doubled,  or  quadrupled,  they  would 
not  be  one  whit  more  safe  than  they  are  now,  for  the 
cogent  reason  that  the  bond  that  holds  a  fraternal  society 
of  this  kind  together  is  confidence. 

Erstwhile  this  confidence  was  a  blind  confidence, 
springing  out  of  the  thought  that  there  was  something 
magical  in  the  term  fraternal,  and  that  all  things  fra- 
ternal were  hedged  about  with  a  mysterious  something 
that  made  inquiry  and  knowledge  necessary. 

Now  it  is  different.  Members  are  no  longer  content 
with  being  told  the  thing  is  done  ;  they  want  to  know  how 
it  is  done,  and  they  only  give  their  confidence  to  make 
the  bond  when  they  are  fully  and  freely  instructed  about 
the  affairs  of  their  society.  They  demand,  in  return  for 
their  confidence,  the  confidence  of  the  men  who  are 
elected  managers. 

Members  of  any  given  association  really  care  very 
little  whether  the  cost  of  protection  is  something  more  in 


76 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


their  own  society  than  some  other,  so  long  as  they  know 
why  it  is  so.  They  understand,  without  any  special  in- 
struction, that  this  kind  of  insurance,  even  in  that  society 
which  is  the  most  expensive,  costs  two-thirds  less  than  by 
the  old-line  method.  They  also  comprehend  that  the 
fraternal  society,  by  its  system  of  small  payments,  makes 
life  insurance  possible  to  them  ;  and  further,  that  if  fra- 
ternal societies  wxre  blotted  out,  ninety  per  cent  of  the 
people  who  compose  them  would  never  have  protection, 
because  of  their  inability  to  make  large  payments,  and 
their  indifference  in  the  premises. 

These  things  the  people  now-a-days  know  without  the 
telling  ;  what  they  need  to  keep  their  confidence  alive  is 
the  truthful  facts  often  told  about  their  own  special 
society.  If  the  death  rate  is  larger  than  usual,  and  de- 
mands an  increased  number  of  assessments,  they  want 
to  know  it  —  increased  assessments  without  reasons 
destroy  confidence.  If  the  growth  in  membership  is 
small,  they  want  to  know  the  reason  why.  They  want  to 
know  how  much  money  is  received  and  paid  out,  and  what 
for  ;  not  that  they  are  looking  for  dishonesty,  but  that 
they  are  looking  for  something  to  strengthen  their  con- 
fidence. 

AVhat  members  want  is  that  the  progressive  facts  about 
a  society  in  which  they  are  concerned  shall  be  published 
monthly  in  the  order  press,  and  not  buried  away  in  the 
sepulchral  proceedings  of  a  supreme  lodge.  Confidence, 
to  live  and  flourish,  must  dine  on  facts,  and  an  order 
newspaper  makes  an  elegant  bill  of  fare. —  Intelligencer, 


The  Springfield  (Illinois)  Sunday  Argus  says  that  every 
man,  in  order  to  provide  for  the  future  welfare  of  those 
dependent  upon  him,  should  carry  a  reasonable  amount 
of  insurance  upon  his  life  ;  that  the  great  fraternal  and 
beneficiar}^  orders  of  the  day  afford  the  best  insurance  at 


The  Woodman'' s  Hand-Booh, 


77 


the  very  minimum  of  cost,  and  adds  :  When  a  man 
foresees  that  a  town  is  going  to  be  a  big  city,  invests  all 
his  spare  cash  there  and  makes  a  fortune,  people  praise 
him  for  his  splendid  business  ability,  which  enabled  him 
to  pick  up  millions  where  thousands  were  before.  But 
he  is  no  more  to  be  commended  than  he  who  forestalls 
the  loss  of  his  life  and  replaces  it  to  his  family  so  far  as 
he  can  with  insurance.  Tis  the  part  of  intelligence,  of 
paternal  love,  of  husbandly  affection.  AVouldn't  you 
hate  to  have  it  said,  if  vou  were  to  die, '  he  was  too  mean 
to  insure  his  life  ?  '  " 


The  Fraternal  Benef^ciary  Order  of  the 
Future. 


Fraternal  insurance  orders  are  practically  an  American 
institution.  Friendly  societies,  it  is  true,  there  have  been 
in  England  for  a  long  time,  but  these,  as  a  rule,  only 
furnished  relief  in  case  of  sickness  or  gave  a  small  sum 
at  death  to  cover  burial  and  other  expenses.  As  the  term 
is  now  used  and  understood,  it  may  be  said  that  when 
the  first  lodge  of  the  Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen 
was  instituted  in  1868,  fraternal  insurance  had  its  birth. 
A  little  over  a  quarter  of  a  century,  then,  covers  the  period 
to  which  we  must  confine  our  attention  in  looking  for  the 
practical  operations  of  the  present  fraternal  insurance 
system.  While  this  history  has  been  comparatively  brief, 
in  our  judgment  it  is  time  that  the  record  should  be 
carefully  scanned,  with  a  view  of  eradicating  any  defects, 
and,  if  possible,  devising  improvements  to  be  incorporated 
into  the  fundamental  law  of  the  several  societies.  If 
any  defects  exist,  we,  as  friends  of  the  system,  should  in- 
vestigate and  find  them,  with  a  view  of  eliminating  that 


78 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


which  is  objectionable,  rather  than  to  wait  until  our 
enemies  discover  and  take  advantage  of  the  imperfections. 

It  is  unquestionably  true  that  many  societies  have  been 
formed  by  men  who  were  honest  and  well-meaning  but 
unacquainted  with  insurance  rules  and  laws  of  mortality. 
Where  this  has  been  the  case,  frequently  too  liberal 
certificates  have  been  issued  and  promises  made  to  the 
incoming  members  which  never  can  be  fulfilled.  The 
founders  of  such  societies  have  allowed  themselves  to 
make  inconsiderate  promises  of  payment  in  case  of  death, 
accident,  disability,  and  sickness,  which  can  never  be  met 
by  anything  like  the  number  of  assessments  contem- 
plated. Estimates  of  the  number  of  assessments  which 
would  be  required  have  been  made  which  were  grossly 
inadequate,  and  as  the  cost  of  the  insurance  has  been 
yearly  increased,  a  discontented  and  sometimes  re- 
bellious membership  has  resulted.  This  is  disastrous  to 
any  organization,  and  especially  a  fraternal  one. 

The  fraternal  insurance  order  of  the  future,  while  its 
fraternal  platform  should  be  the  broadest  possible,  will 
have  its  insurance  contract  drawn  upon  conservative 
business  principles,  with  no  promises  made  on  behalf  of 
the  order  which  the  laws  of  mortality  do  not  show  can  be 
safely  entered  into  and  as  surely  fulfilled. 

While  it  shall  not  be  my  purpose  to  particularize  as  to 
what  I  may  consider  defects  in  the  laws  of  some  of  the 
orders  of  to-day,  I  hope  that  two  or  three  suggestions  in 
a  general  way  will  not  be  considered  out  of  place.  With- 
out doubt  the  rate  of  assessment  in  many  societies  was 
made  too  low.  What  was  thought  to  be  a  sufficient  rate 
to  carry  the  insurance  taken  w^as  fixed  upon  with  a  view 
of  collecting  the  amount  required  in  monthly  assess- 
ments When,  as  has  been  the  case  in  many  instances, 
it  was  found  necessary  to  double  and  triple  the  assess- 
ments each  month  to  pay  the  claims,  the  members  have 
become  dissatisfied.    This  dissatisfaction  has  arisen  not 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


79 


so  much  at  the  actual  cost  of  carrying  the  insurance  as 
to  the  constantly  increasing  number  of  assessments  they 
have  been  compelled  to  pay.  The  rates  should,  then,  be 
fixed  large  enough  in  the  start  so  that  single  monthly 
assessments  will  carry  the  amount  of  the  certificate  taken. 

Many  societies  have  disregarded  all  laws  of  mortality 
by  accepting  and  insuring  members  at  too  advanced 
ages  without  adequately  increasing  the  rate.  This  has 
been  and  is  being  remedied  in  most  orders  ;  and  without 
doubt  all  societies  that  have  not  already  done  so  will  soon 
see  the  need  of  reducing  the  age  of  admission  and  grad- 
ing the  assessments  or  the  amount  of  the  certificate  in 
accordance  with  the  mortality  tables  based  upon  age  at 
the  time  of  joining. 

In  nearly  all  of  the  orders  the  rate  charged  for  the  first 
few  years  after  the  organization  of  the  society  was  not  as 
large  as  it  should  have  been.  Only  the  amount  needed 
for  the  current  death  rate  was  collected  and  too  cheap 
insurance  furnished,  which  necessarily  was  largely  in- 
creased later  on.  The  members  from  the  start  should  be 
made  to  pay  a  reasonable  amount  for  the  insurance 
carried.  The  balance  above  what  is  required  for  the  pay- 
ment of  actual  losses  could  be  held  in  reserve  or  safely 
invested  for  the  benefit  of  the  society.  Fifteen  assess- 
ments from  the  start  in  most  societies  would  have  created 
a  fund  the  interest  upon  which  would  have  made  ample 
provision  for  the  payment  of  the  running  expenses  of  the 
organization. 

One  of  the  most  flagrant  mistakes  made  by  officers  and 
organizers  in  the  past  has  been  the  laying  of  too  much 
stress  upon  the  cheapness  of  fraternal  insurance.  Many 
have  been  led  to  believe  by  enthusiastic  members  and 
poorly-informed  organizers  that  the  cost  of  their  insur- 
ance would  be  but  a  trifling  sum,  and  they  have  not 
considered  or  been  duly  impressed  with  the  importance 
and  real  worth  of  the  protection  afforded.     While  the 


80 


The  Woodman's  Hand-BooL 


cheapness  may  be  spoken  of  in  contradistinction  to  the 
exorbitant  rates  charged  by  old  line  companies,  the  in- 
coming member  should  be  taught  to  understand  that 
while  it  will  cost  him  something  to  keep  up  the  assess- 
ments it  is  money  well  expended. 

Thus  far  fraternal  insurance  has  been  largely  experi- 
mental. That  it  meets  a  want  felt  by  the  people  of  the 
land  is  demonstrated  by  its  thousands  of  adherents.  That 
it  has  been  a  national  blessing,  the  millions  of  dollars 
given  annually  to  the  beneficiaries  of  its  members  clearly 
proves.  The  large  number  of  its  adherents  and  the  un- 
told good  accomplished,  however,  should  all  the  more 
impress  the  founders  and  managers  of  the  different 
orders  with  the  responsibility  resting  upon  them.  They 
should  be  led  to  lay  so  broad  and  deep  the  foundation 
principles  of  their  respective  societies  that  the  fraternal 
system  may  not  prove  a  failure,  but  that  the  laws  may 
be  so  molded  that  it  may  be  handed  down  from  genera- 
tion to  generation. — Albert  Morgan,  at  National  Fraternal 
Congress. 


Response  to  Address  of  Welcome. 


W.  A.  Northcott,  Head  Consul  of  the  Modern  Wood- 
men of  America,  made  the  following  response  to  the  ad- 
dress of  welcome  delivered  at  the  National  Fraternal 
Congress,  held  at  Cincinnati,  November,  1893  : 

It  affords  me  much  pleasure  to  respond  to  this  most 
courteous  welcome  to  the  beautiful  city  of  Cincinnati,  the 
metropolis  of  the  great  commonwealth  of  Ohio.  We 
come,  Mr.  Mayor,  to  hold  this  session  of  the  Fraternal 
Congress  as  the  representatives  of  nearly  forty  societies, 
that  hold  in  their  membership  one  million  five  hundred 
thousand  of  the  brainy  workingnien  of  this  great  re- 


Humphrey  Pierce,  Member  Auditing  Committee, 
Appleton,  Wis. 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


81 


public.  A  congress  that  has  collected  and  disbursed, 
during  the  last  year  alone,  the  vast  sum  of  $28,000,000 
to  the  families  of  deceased  members.  Think  of  the  great 
good  this  has  done  ;  think  of  the  desolate  places  made 
glad  ;  of  the  tears  it  has  wiped  from  the  cheek  of  the 
widow  ;  it  has  clothed  and  fed  little  children  and  sent 
them  to  school  ;  it  has  held  homes  together.  This  is  a 
great  organized  charity  that  is  not  indiscriminate,  but 
goes  to  the  worthy  and  the  helpless  ;  and  in  this  great 
work  we  deserve  the  encouragement  and  support  of  every 
good  citizen  of  the  nation. 

It  is  proper,  Mr.  Mayor,  that  you,  as  the  chief  execu- 
tive of  this  municipality,  should  welcome  us  as  the  rep- 
resentatives of  these  societies.  Next  to  the  government 
itself,  there  is  no  greater  organization  in  the  land,  and 
one  that  deals  with  the  vital  interests  of  more  people. 
Nine  millions  of  souls  are  dependent  upon  these  societies, 
and  directly  interested  in  the  deliberations  of  this  con- 
gress. The  benefit  societies  of  the  United  States  embrace 
a  membership  of  nearly  three  million,  and  those  interested 
in  the  benefits  carried  by  these  members  form  a  vast 
army.  In  a  short  time  all  similar  societies  in  the  United 
States  will  be  enrolled  as  members  of  this  congress,  and 
the  immensity  of  its  influence  for  good  cannot  be  over- 
estimated. 

These  fraternal  benefit  societies  are  like  representative 
governments.  The  members  of  the  order  are  its  rulers, 
and  the  officers  its  servants.  It  is  not  a  joint  stock  com- 
pany, managed  by  a  few  individuals,  with  an  indefinite 
tenure  of  office,  and  without  accountability,  but  it  is  a 
great  fraternity  that  has  immediate  control,  through  its 
delegates,  of  the  aff'airs  of  the  orders.  If  officers  become 
incompetent  or  corrupt,  they  are  speedily  displaced  and 
new  ones  put  in  their  places.  These  orders  possess  the 
power  of  self-preservation  and  self-perpetuation.  The 
statistics  of  history  show  that  but  two  or  three  fraternal 
6 


82 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Boo k. 


benefit  societies  have  failed  since  the  foundation  of  this 
government ;  while  the  number  of  mutual  insurance 
companies  without  the  fraternal  feature  that  have  failed 
is  very  great.  The  fraternal  insurance  order,  once  estab- 
lished, seems  almost  immortal.  They  are  of  the  people, 
for  the  people,  and  by  the  people.  From  a  consideration 
of  these  statements  the  importance  of  the  fraternal  feature 
in  our  societies  becomes  obvious,  even  from  the  standpoint 
of  the  soundness  of  the  insurance.  But  there  is  still 
more  in  our  societies  than  the  insurance  feature.  There 
is  something  in  the  brotherhood  of  man  ;  there  is  some- 
thing in  the  sympathy  in  times  of  distress  ;  a  kindly  visit 
from  a  brother  when  we  lie  on  a  sick  bed,  and  the  help 
given  to  our  families  when  we  are  so  unfortunate  as  not 
to  be  able  to  help  them  ourselves.  None  of  us  are  so 
strong  or  so  fortunately  situated  that  there  may  not  come 
to  us  a  dark  hour  when  we  need  a  kindly  hand  to  help  us. 
This  does  not  come  to  us  as  charity,  for  we  have  a  right 
to  it  ;  we  would  do  the  same  ourselves  for  other  brothers 
in  distress,  and  we  have  a  right  to  expect  the  same  from 
them.  One  stick  is  easily  broken,  but  a  bundle  of  sticks 
is  invincible.  It  is  a  grand  thought  that  in  that  great 
territory  extending  from  the  shores  of  the  Atlantic  west- 
ward to  "  where  California's  brooks  wash  down  her  sands 
of  gold,"  live  three  million  freemen,  bound  together  as 
with  a  common  cord  for  the  mutual  benefit  and  protection 
of  their  families.  We  are  proud,  as  their  representatives, 
to  meet  here  to-day  to  deliberate  for  their  common  wel- 
fare. 

This  congress  has  a  great  work  to  do.  As  one  of  its 
new  members  I  appreciate  the'  great  work  that  is  to  be 
done  in  this  and  coming  sessions  in  developing  its  great 
power  for  good.  As  yet  it  is  but  comparatively  an  infant 
that  will  feel  the  strength  and  power  and  growth  that 
coming  years  will  bring.  Great  questions  must  be  solved 
at  this  meeting,  great  work  will  be  done.    Let  us  bring  to 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


83 


these  deliberations  that  fraternal  spirit  which  our  societies 
teach.  Let. this  fraternal  spirit  not  be  bounded  by  state 
lines  or  restricted  by  the  ambitions  of  individual  societies, 
but  rather  let  us  feel  and  appreciate  the  magnitude  of 
the  work  before  us,  and  the  proper  spirit  that  should 
guide  us. 

Mr.  President,  let  me  thank  you  for  the  honor  you  have 
conferred  upon  me  in  asking  me  to  respond  to  this  ad- 
dress of  welcome  ;  and,  Mr.  Mayor,  let  me  again  thank 
you  for  this  generous  and  hearty  welcome  which  you  give 
us  on  behalf  of  your  people,  to  the  hospitality  of  your 
beautiful  city. 


The  Lodge  a  School. 


Let  a  Neighbor  attend  his  Camp  regularly  and  he  will 
become  better  qualified  to  discharge  his  duties  as  a  citi- 
zen of  the  republic.  The  proceedings  of  a  Camp  are  con- 
ducted in  conformity  with  the  rules  prescribed  for  the 
deliberation  of  congress,  and  familiarity  with  the  affairs 
of  a  Camp  qualifies  a  man  for  any  public  business.  The 
organizations  with  which  Americans  organize  and  govern 
themselves  has  often  been  noticed  by  travelers.  Very 
few  Americans  are  unconnected  with  some  fraternity,  and 
in  these  societies  they  are  subject  to  discipline.  This  pre- 
pares them  for  a  wider  field  of  action.  The  spirit  of 
good-will  diffused  throughout  a  Camp  encourages  a 
Neighbor  to  take  part  in  its  proceedings.  If  he  makes 
a  mistake  he  is  not  laughed  at,  and  he  is  not  afraid  to 
try  again.  Many  an  awkward,  blundering  Neighbor  has 
been  drilled  into  a  graceful,  prompt,  and  adroit  debater, 
and  at  some  public  meeting  astonishes  his  outside  ac- 
quaintances with  his  apparent  spontaneous  readiness. 
Money  and  energy  are  the  chief  means  of  success  in 


84 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


business,  but  they  will  be  unprofitably  spent  unless  the 
•possessor  has  business  tact ;  and  many  a  citizen  of  ten 
talents'  worth  virtually  buries  them  in  the  earth  by  not 
knowing  how  to  use  them. —  The  Triangle. 


A  Suggestion. 


We  wish  to  impress  on  the  minds  of  our  readers  the 
importance  of  having  benefit  certificates  made  payable 
to  the  wife.  The  husband  and  father  whose  wife  has 
proved  worthy  of  his  love  should  not  have  her  troubles 
complicated  by  naming  the  children  with  her  as  benefi- 
ciaries. If  the  money  is  paid  to  the  wife,  she  can  use  it 
in  the  care  and  education  of  the  children  at  the  very 
time  when  it  is  most  needed  ;  but  if  a  portion  of  it  is  to 
be  paid  to  the  children,  the  money  can  only  be  reached 
through  the  guardian,  and  is  accompanied  with  both  ex- 
pense and  difficulty.  To  a  great  degree  the  purposes  of 
the  order  are  frustrated  by  these  hampering  restrictions. 
The  mother  love  can  safely  be  trusted  to  take  care  of  the 
little  ones.    Let  the  money  go  to  her. —  The  Echo. 


So  much  has  been  said  and  written  on  the  relation  of 
fraternal  societies  to  the  church,  a  great  deal  of  which 
has  been  misleading  and  unwarranted,  that  many  people 
no  doubt  have  been  influenced  not  to  connect  themselves 
with  such  societies.  The  following  from  the  pen  of  Rev. 
J.  H.  Chandler,  of  St.  Paul,  Minn.,  presents  the  matter 
in  its  true  light  :  "  The  true  relation  of  the  church  and 
the  lodge  is  that  of  helpful  allies.  The  beneficial  order 
can  do  a  kind  of  work  in  providing  for  the  sick  benefit 
and  the  provision  for  the  family  in  case  of  death  which 


The  ]VoodmaiLS  Haud-l^ook. 


85 


the  church  cannot  do,  but  which  it  may  wisely  sanction 
and  recommend.  The  lodge  stands,  too,  for  friendship  ; 
surely  an  excellent  thing.  But  these  benefits  are  not  all 
that  a  man  needs.  In  addition  to  these  ties  and  this  pro- 
vision for  needs  of  the  few  years  of  a  man's  life,  the 
church  comes  with  its  message  concerning  'the  com- 
munion of  saints  and  life  everlasting.'" 


General  Fund. 


The  following  is  the  report  of  the  Finance  Committee 
of  the  National  Fraternal  Congress,  held  in  November, 
»  1888  : 

To  the  President,  Officers,  and  Members  of  the  National  Fra- 
ternal Congress : 

Brothers  :  The  nature  of  the  objects  of  the  National 
Fraternal  Congress  must  of  necessity  lead  to  the  con- 
sideration of  all  subjects  which  affect  and  are  of  interest 
to  fraternal  and  beneficial  societies,  and  to  their  con- 
sideration in  their  broadest  and  most  comprehensive 
sense. 

These  societies  have  become  a  feature  of  our  national 
greatness,  and  while  such  associations  in  some  form  or 
other  date  back  almost,  if  not  entirely,  to  the  beginning 
of  civilization  itself,  still  their  present  modernized  and 
improved  existence,  the  result  of  experience  and  of  ad- 
vance in  human  thought,  have  made  them  such  a  power 
for  good  in  human  affairs  that  it  well  becomes  those  who 
are  interested  in  their  continued  and  future  usefulness  to 
carefulh^  study  the  subject  and  seek  to  keep  them  as  they 
are  now  —  abreast  of  the  times  —  and  to  improve,  as  far 
as  possible,  their  condition  and  stability,  to  the  end  that 


86 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


their  glorious  record  for  good  works  may  be  made  more 
resplendent,  and  that  their  beneficent  influences  may 
continue  to  be  a  marked  feature  of  our  age  and  genera- 
tion. 

With  these  ideas  in  mind,  your  Committee  on  Finance 
have  deemed  it  wise  to  submit  some  suggestions  regard- 
ing the  general  financial  management  and  policy  of  such 
societies  and  associations  as  are  represented  at  the  present 
session  of  the  congress. 

It  is  well  known  and  acknowledged  in  the  business 
world  that  insufficient  financial  facilities  in  the  manage- 
ment of  any  great  enterprise  are,  as  a  rule,  the  precursors 
of  a  puny  existence,  if  not  finally  of  its  entire  failure. 
That  fact  is  as  applicable  to  such  societies  as  ours  as  in 
any  other  department  of  business.  It  is  true,  and  we 
are  all  proud  of  it,  that  one  of  our  sturdy  safeguards  is 
fraternity.  Indeed,  many  of  us  look  upon  that  beautiful 
sentiment  as  the  very  base  and  corner-stone  of  our  pros- 
perity. Accepting  that  as  the  fact,  along  with  it  must  be 
a  financial  policy  which  shall  not  only  not  cripple  the 
management  of  the  business  and  monetary  aff'airs,  as 
well  as  the  growth  and  development  of  the  various  asso- 
ciations, but  that  will  render  it  independent  and  strong 
to  pursue  vigorously  the  work  which  shall  keep  them 
along  with  and  abreast  of  the  business  procession  of  the 
age.  If  such  a  policy  is  not  pursued  we  cannot  hope  for 
progress  and  success,  and  those  societies  and  associations 
who  map  out  and  pursue  a  liberal  and  aggressive  line  of 
action  in  this  regard  will  very  soon  forge  ahead  and  leave 
far  in  the  distance  those  who  do  not. 

We  utilize  the  thoughts  above  suggested  in  the  con- 
sideration of  the  contribution  to  and  use  of  what  is 
known  in  our  organizations  as  the  ''General  Fund." 
This  fund  is  provided  and  used  for  defraying  the  general 
expenses  of  our  organizations  from  the  subordinate  up 
to  and  including  the  supreme.   There  is  now,  and  always 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


87 


has  been,  amongst  many  members  of  these  societies  an 
idea  that  the  fraternal  sentiment  in  the  membership 
should  induce  some  of  the  members  to  perform  all  the 
duties  and  labor  incident  to  their  success  and  stability, 
and  with  little  or  no  other  reward  than  the  gratification 
of  that  sentiment,  and  hence  are  always  complain- 
ings—  first  because  the  dues  the}^  have  to  pay  are  exces- 
sive, and  that  expenses  are  too  heavy  in  all  departments 
of  the  organization.  This  idea  should  be  educated  out 
of  the  membership,  and  the  doctrine  of  fair  compensa- 
tion to  those  who  year  after  year  bear  the  burden  and 
heat  of  the  day  "  in  performing  the  labor  and  duties 
which  are  a  necessity  to  success.  To  do  this,  and  to  pro- 
vide for  expenses  of  various  kinds,  which  necessarily  are 
incurred,  the  dues  paid  into  the  "  general  fund  "  should 
be  sufficient  to  at  all  times  prevent  any  j)aucity  in  that 
fund,  either  in  the  subordinate  or  supreme  bodies  of  the 
organization,  and  the  policy  in  the  use  of  this  fund 
should  be  to  have  the  compensation  of  all  the  officers 
who  have  onerous,  exacting,  and  important  duties  to  per- 
form such  as  will  insure  securing  the  services  of  those 
full}^  competent  to  perform  those  duties  in  a  creditable 
and  business-like  manner,  and  also  to  have  at  command 
funds  sufficient  to  provide  all  necessary  facilities  for 
prosecuting  the  work  actively  and  vigorously.  It  is  the 
province  of  the  supreme  or  legislative  branch,  which 
makes  the  laws  for  and  executes  them  in  these  associa- 
tions, to  require  the  subordinate  organizations  to  make 
such  provisions  as  are  herein  suggested  by  legislative 
enactment,  and  it  is  just  as  necessary  for  the  superior 
body  to  make  liberal  provisions  in  the  matter  of  its 
revenues  in  order  to  successfully  regulate  and  prosecute 
its  work  as  that  the  subordinate  and  intermediate  or- 
ganizations should  be  required  to  do  so. 

What  can  be  more  embarrassing  to  the  executive  of- 
ficers of  organizations  such  as  those  represented  at  this 


88 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


congress,  and  which  collect  and  distribute  millions  of  dol- 
lars annually,  and  at  the  same  time  manage  and  regulate 
all  the  details  of  such  important  institutions,  than  to  find 
themselves  with  an  insignificant,  if  not  an  empty,  ''gen- 
eral fund  "  with  which  to  prosecute  their  work  ?  And 
how  can  success  and  a  creditable  administration  be  looked 
for  from  those  in  authority  if  they  are  thus  hampered  ? 
The  treasuries  of  the  ''general  funds"  of  many  of  the 
supreme  and  intermediate  bodies  whose  representatives 
are  at  this  session  are  too  low  to  insure  a  healthy  and 
vigorous  administration,  and  in  most  cases  needlessly  so. 
One  or  two  of  the  organizations  within  the  past  year  or 
two  have  found  it  necessary  to  increase  their  revenues  to 
an  extent  commensurate  with  their  needs,  and  the  result 
has  been  noticed  since  in  the  impetus  given  to  the  orga- 
nizations all  along  the  line.  The  opposition  to  increasing 
the  income  generally  comes  from  a  fear  of  unrest  and 
complaint  among  the  membership,  but  these  organiza- 
tions are  mainly  composed  of  citizens  who  will  not  object 
to  a  small  additional  tax  if  the  occasion  for  it  is  explained 
properly  to  them,  and  they  made  to  realize  that  it  is  done 
to  make  the  organization  more  prosperous,  and  hence 
their  interests  better  conserved. 

Experience  has  proven  to  all  of  us  who  have  been 
actively  interested  in  our  associations  and  societies  that 
continued  growth  is  necessary  to  continued  prosperity, 
and  that  that  growth  can  only  be  accomplished  by  unre- 
mitting effort,  and  that  means  consequent  expenditure 
for  all  reasonable  expenses  incurred.  To  the  membership 
we  believe  it  is  only  necessary  to  make  the  proper  repre- 
sentation and  explanation  in  order  to  receive  instead  of 
complaint  and  mutterings  of  unrest  the  most  cordial  co- 
operation by  a  ready  compliance  with  the  demand  for  a 
generous    general  fund." 

Your  committee  must  not  be  understood  as  suggesting 
a  want  or*  absence  of  economy  in  the  use  of  the  "  general 


The  Woodman's  Hand-BooJc. 


89 


fund  "  by  those  in  whose  care  it  is  placed  in  either  the 
subordinate. or  superior  bodies  of  the  organization.  On 
the  contrary,  the  most  rigid  economy  should  be  exercised 
at  all  times  consistent  with  the  needs  of  a  A^gorous  and 
business-like  policy,  but  that  economy  should  be  a  wise 
and  not  a  false  one.  It  should  be  such  as  while  used  to 
add  vigor  and  health  to  an  already  healthful  body,  should 
so  judiciously  govern  the  expenditures  as  to  produce 
maximum  results  with  a  reasonable  minimum  of  expense. 

The  question  as  to  what  are  necessary  expenses,  or  to 
what  extent  and  in  what  directions  the  general  fund  " 
should  be  used  for  the  purpose  of  promoting  the  general 
prosperity  of  the  organization  is  hardly  a  proper  one  to 
be  discussed  in  this  paper,  as  the  exigencies  of  the  cases 
as  they  arise  in  the  work  would  have  much  to  do  in  in- 
fluencing the  determination  of  such  a  question,  and  it 
would  necessarily  have  to  be  left  to  the  discretion  and 
judgment  of  the  legislative  bodies  in  session  or  to  the 
executive  officers  in  the  interim.  It  can  safely  be  taken 
for  granted  that  those  to  whose  care  so  important  a  ques- 
tion is  committed  by  their  constituencies  in  organizations 
like  ours,  where  all  are  imbued  with  the  spirit  of  fratern- 
ity, love,  and  honor,  will  always  be  found  true  to  their 
trust,  and  careful  in  administering  it. 

Submitting  the  foregoing  thoughts  for  the  considera- 
tion of  the  congress  regarding  the  general  fund,"  your 
committee  beg  to  submit  the  few  suggestions  regarding 
the  care  of  the  "benefit  fund,"  that  magnificent  accumu- 
lation of  small  financial  atoms  which  is  contributed  by 
the  membership  for  the  beneficent  purposes  to  which  it 
is  dedicated.  As  to  the  various  systems  in  vogue  in  the 
several  organizations  of  levying  the  assessments,  and  the 
wisdom  or  unwisdom  of  the  level  or  graded  plans,  we 
shall  not  venture  suggestions,  those  being  matters  of  in- 
ternal affairs  in  the  several  organizations.  The  question, 
however,  of  the  care  of  these  funds,  and  the  safeguards 


90 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


necessary  in  order  that  the  entire  membership  shall  feel 
perfect  security,  and  the  confidence  of  the  public  be 
challenged,  is  a  subject  which  is  of  the  utmost  irnportance 
to  all.  Too  much  care  can  not  be  taken  in  selecting  de- 
positories and  distributing  the  funds  into  deposits  of 
moderate  dimensions  in  two  or  more  different  depositories, 
according  to  the  amount  of  money  on  hand  at  any  one 
time,  so  that  in  case  of  financial  disaster  to  any  the  risk 
of  loss  will  be  reduced  to  a  minimum.  The  systems  or 
regulations  adopted  for  the  handling  of  those  funds  is 
also  a  matter  of  grave  importance,  and  cannot  be  too  care- 
fully considered  before  adoption.  The  depositories  having 
been  selected  by  proper  authority,  the  money  after  being 
deposited  therein  should  be  drawn  out  to  pay  claims  to 
beneficiaries  only  on  checks  signed  by  the  financial 
officer  to  whose  care  it  is  entrusted,  and  countersigned  b}^ 
the  executive  officer  of  the  association.  The  disburse- 
ments should  also  be  under  the  careful  eye  and  the 
accounts  subject  to  the  scrutiny  of  a  diligent  finance 
committee  or  board  of  trustees.  These  are  the  ordinary 
precautions  taken  by  corporations  where  large  amounts 
of  money  are  received  and  disbursed,  and  surely  none 
less  should  be  adopted  by  organizations  like  ours.  The 
bonds  of  financial  and  executive  officers  should  be  ample 
to  cover  their  responsibility,  and  the  sureties  should  not 
be  members  of  the  order  if  it  can  be  avoided,  for  the 
reason  that  the  courts  in  some  states  have  taken  very 
peculiar  views  of  the  relation  of  one  member  to  another 
in  becoming  surety  for  him  in  a  fiduciary  capacity  in  the 
organization  of  which  they  with  others  are  members. 
This  is  especially  so  in  the  case  of  subordinate  and  inter- 
mediate bodies  in  such  organizations  as  are  represented 
here,  where  they  are  not  incorporated  under  the  laws  of 
the  state  where  they  are  located.  To  avoid  possible  legal 
complications,  therefore,  it  would  seem  wise  to  accept 
only  as  sureties  those  who  are  not  members  of  the  or- 
ganization to  which  the  surety  is  given. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand- Book. 


91 


111  the  regulations  made  for  disbursing  the  funds,  while 
all  the  precautions  above  mentioned  should  be  taken  and 
the  most  watchful  care  observed  by  those  who  are  charged 
with  that  duty,  still  there  is  a  possibility  that  over-caution, 
bordering  almost,  in  rare  cases,  on  to  crankiness,  may  seek 
to  throw  so  many  conditions  around  the  officers  who  are 
charged  with  handling  the  funds  as  to  hamper  them 
seriously,  and  at  the  same  time  not  materially  add  to  the 
safety  of  the  trust.  The  wise  course  is  to  pursue  a  con- 
servative business-like  policy  in  the  matter,  and  thereby 
insure  comparative  safety,  and  at  the  same  time  leave  the 
officers  charged  with  the  disbursement  of  the  money  with 
sufficient  freedom  not  to  delay  the  adjustment  and  pay- 
ment of  claims  to  those  who  are  entitled  to  receive 
promptly  that  which  provident  members  have  left  them 
as  ttjeir  heritage. 

The  summary  of  the  argument  is  that  in  all  the  business 
to  be  done  regarding  the  finances,  from  the  subordinate 
branches  up  to  and  including  the  legislative  and  execu- 
tive authorities  of  each  and  every  society,  prompt,  careful 
business  methods  should  be  observed.  The  same  business 
rules  as  are  peculiar  to  successful  business  in  every-day 
business  life  are  applicable  in  these  associations,  and  if 
they  are  always  adhered  to  there  is  every  reason  to  expect 
that  the  result  will  be  such  as  to  satisfy  the  most  pro- 
nounced skeptic  of  the  usefulness  and  stability  of  fra- 
ternal organizations. 

Fraternally  submitted, 

E.  M.  SCHRYVER,  )  ^ 

.       B.  F.  Nelson,       \  ^'^^'i^'^' 


A  Timely  Warning. 


James  Leahy,  aged  forty-six  years,  was  adopted  as  a 
Neighbor  of  Court  Camp,  No.  454,  Springfield,  111.,  in 
April,  1888,  and  carried  a  certificate  for  $1,000,  made 


92 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Book. 


payable  to  his  wife  at  his  death.  He  was  employed  as 
night  caller  at  the  Wabash  railroad  shops,  at  Springfield. 
On  the  night  of  October  17th,  last,  he  stepped  upon  the 
platform  of  a  caboose  to  make  a  call,  when,  without  a 
word  of  warning,  a  train  of  freight  cars  struck  the  car 
upon  which  he  was  standing,  knocking  him  off  and  kill- 
ing him.  instantly.  This  claim  was  passed  upon  at  the 
October  meeting  of  our  Board  of  Directors,  and  immedi- 
ate settlement  thereof  ordered. 

John  Brown,  aged  fifty  years,  was  a  Neighbor  by 
adoption  of  Camp  No.  113,  located  at  Savanna,  111.  He 
carried  a  certificate  for  $2,000,  in  favor  of  his  wife.  He 
had  been  a  member  of  Woodcraft  about  two  months, 
having  been  adopted  in  July.  On  the  first  day  of  October 
he  was  accidentally  killed  by  the  caving  in  of  a  sandbank 
in  the  yards  of  the  C.  M.  &  St.  P.  Railroad  Co.,  at  Savanna, 
111.  His  claim  was  adjusted  at  the  recent  meeting  of  the 
Board,  and  the  $2,000  w^ill  be  handed  over  to  his  widow 
without  delay. 

And  still  another  case  is  that  of  the  sudden  death  of 
Neighbor  John  T.  Dahl,  late  of  Camp  No.  1258,  Rice 
Lake,  AVis.  Neighbor  Dahl  carried  a  certificate  for  $2,000 
in  favor  of  his  wife.  He  had  been  a  member  but  fifteen 
days.  His  wife  had  been  very  ill  and  he  had  sat  up  with 
her  for  many  long  and  weary  nights,  until  he  was  almost 
exhausted.  On  the  evening  of  September  30th,  while  in 
the  act  of  pumping  some  water,  he  fell  to  the  ground  with 
cerebral  hemorrhage,  from  which  he  never  recovered. 
The  claim  for  $2,000  also  received  the  attention  of  the 
Board,  and  the  full  amount  will  be  paid  to  the  wife  im- 
mediately. 

Your  attention  is  called  to  these  cases  of  sudden  and 
accidental  deaths  as  a  warning  to  those  who  are  not  mem- 
bers of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America,  as  also  to  any 
Neighbor  of  our  order  who  may  be  in  the  habit  of  per- 
mitting himself  to  become  suspended.    To  the  first  we 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


93 


would  say,  make  application  for  membership  immediately. 
The  rate  is  very  low.  You  will  never  miss  the  mone}^  in- 
vested, and  at  night  you  can  lie  down  to  rest  with  the 
full  satisfaction  of  knowing  that  in  case  3^ou  are  taken 
from  your  loved  ones  they  will  not  be  left  to  the  cold 
charity  of  the  world.  Do  not  hesitate  for  a  moment.  It 
is  a  duty  you  owe  to  your  wife  and  little  ones.  Come  and 
join  the  grand  army  of  sons  of  the  forest.  To  any  Neigh- 
bor who  may  be  negligent  in  the  prompt  payment  of  his 
assessments,  we  have  only  to  cite  you  to  the  instance 
where  the  husband  and  father  had  been  in  the  habit  of 
permitting  his  certificate  of  $3,000  to  become  void  from 
time  to  time.  He  was  careless  in  the  payment  of  his  as- 
sessments and  dues.  It  was  the  last  day  of  the  month. 
His  wife  asked  whether  the  assessment  had  been  paid. 
It  had  not.  He  would  go  around  to  the  clerk  and  settle 
the  next  day,"  but  the  wife  herself  took  the  last  dollar  in 
the  house  and  settled  in  full  with  the  order.  That  same 
night  the  husband  was  accidentally  killed.  The  order 
paid  over  the  $3,000,  and  the  mother  and  babies  were 
saved  from  poverty  and  want.  Heed  the  warning.  Be 
prompt  in  the  payment  of  your  assessments.  You  can- 
not afford  to  have  your  name  placed  upon  the  list  of  sus- 
pensions, for  death  may  overtake  you  when  least  expected. 
Pay  to-day,  and  feel  happy  and  contented  to-morrow. 


Future  Cost. 


When  the  relative  cost  of  co-operative  vs.  old  line  in- 
surance is  discussed,  there  is  but  one  argument  advanced 
by  the  old  liners  which  is  not  readily  met  by  the  advo- 
cates of  fraternal  insurance,  and  that  consists  in  the 
statement,  confidently  advanced,  that,  although  the  in- 
surance may  be  cheaper  at  the  present  time,  it  is  only  a 


94 


The  Woodman's  Hond-Booh. 


question  of  a  few  years  when  all  the  members  having  ad- 
vanced in  years,  and  the  death  rate  per  thousand  members 
having  equally  advanced,  the  number  or  frequency  of 
assessments  must  necessarily  advance  in  the  same  ratio, 
and  thus  the  cost  of  the  insurance  to  the  persistent  mem- 
bers will  be  enormous  at  the  period  in  life  when  advanced 
age  will  render  it  impracticable  to  substitute  better  and 
cheaper  insurance.  No  instances  are  cited  in  support  of 
this  proposition,  but  it  is  ingeniously  declared  to  be  sus- 
ceptible of  mathematical  demonstration. 

Fraternal  insurance  advocates  can  hardly  appeal  to  the 
experience  of  Am^erican  fraternities  in  answer  to  this 
argument,  for  the  reason  that  none  of  them  have  been 
organized  long  enough  to  give  their  experience  statistical 
value,  and  the  older  societies  have  organic  defects  which 
exclude  them  as  criterions  for  the  newer  and  better-or- 
ganized bodies  ;  still,  the  experience  of  the  newer  societies 
as  to  the  effect  of  young  blood,  lapses,  etc.,  encmirage  all 
fraternal  insurance  advocates  in  the  belief  that  not  only 
is  that  class  of  insurance  temporarily  cheaper  than  old 
line,  but  that  the  time  will  never  come  when  in  any  well 
regulated  society  it  will  cost  one-half  the  price  of  the 
same  protection  in  old  line  companies. 

A  singularly  appropriate  and  convincing  argument  has 
been  placed  at  the  disposal  of  all  fraternity  men  by  some 
facts  lately  collated  by  one  of  their  number. 

Masonry  has  been  organized  in  this  country  over  one 
hundred  years  ;  Odd  Fellowship  over  seventy-three  years. 
Neither  society  has  ever  had  any  physical  test  for  mem- 
bership, nor  inquired  as  to  the  family  history  of  candi- 
dates, but  a  total  membership  of  more  than  a  million  has 
been  gathered  upon  social  qualifications  alone,  and  no 
efforts  are  made  to  keep  the  average  age  of  the  member- 
ship low.  These  societies  have  been  initiating  members  ; 
losing  some  by  lapses  and  others  by  death  for  nearly  a 
hundred  years,  and  still,  in  the  year  1891,  an  assessment 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


95 


of  $24  upon  each  of  the  living  members  would  have  paid 
$2,000  to  the  family  of  every  member  who  died  during 
that  year.  If  after  an  existence  of  a  century  these  so- 
cieties, with  never  a  medical  examination,  could  insure 
their  membership)  upon  a  basis  of  $12  annually  for  $1,000 
of  indemnity,  is  it  unreasonable  to  conclude  that  societies 
such  as  ours,  with  rigid  medical  examination,  can  main- 
tain a  rate  of  $6  annually  per  $1,000  of  indemnity  until 
they  attain  an  equal  age  ? 

The  conclusion  is  irresistible,  that  with  a  good  plan, 
intelligently  devised  and  honestly  administered,  the  mem- 
bers may  not  only  view  the  present  with  satisfaction,  but 
safely  leave  the  future  to  take  care  of  itself. —  Woodman. 


Dr.  H.  O.  Larrabee,  Member  Auditing  Committee, 
Winona,  Minn. 


1 


BIMn(Dinisifl 


National  Fraternal  Congress. 


HE  National  Fraternal  Congress  is 
a  union  of  the  fraternal  benefi- 
ciary societies  of  the  United 
£  States  and  Canada.    It  was  or- 
ganized  at  Washington,  D.  C, 
^     November  16th,  1886. 


^^y^^^J^^^^^^^     The  object  of  this  congress  is 

to  bind  these  fraternal  benefi- 
ciary societies  into  closer  relationship  for  mutual  benefit 
and  protection.  Its  purposes  are  effected  in  the  follow- 
ing ways  : 

First.  It  secures  proper  and  uniform  legislation  in 
favor  of  these  societies. 

Second.  It  secures  more  perfect  medical  examinations 
and  matures  a  better  system  of  securing  healthy  risks. 

Third.  It  promotes  a  friendly  feeling  between  the 
managements  of  the  difi'erent  societies  and  prevents  un- 
friendly criticism  and  petty  jealousies  between  them. 

Fourth.  It  upholds  and  exemplifies  the  benefits  of 
fraternal  insurance,  as  against  other  systems. 

The  good  accomplished  by  this  congress  grows  with 
each  year  of  its  existence.  The  time  will  soon  come  when 
it  will  be  one  of  the  greatest  powers  in  behalf  of  fraternal 
insurance. 

It  has  already  accomplished  much  in  securing  proper 
legislation  and  promoting  a  more  amicable  relationship 
between  its  members. 

The  last  congress  through  its  committee  secured  the 
passage  of  the  bill  in  congress  of  the  United  States  for- 


100 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


ever  settling  the  question  of  admission  of  the  fraternal 
papers  through  the  mails  as  second-class  matter.  This 
work  alone  would  justify  the  existence  of  the  congress. 
But  it  has  a  great  work  to  do  in  the  future  in  promoting 
and  maturing  the  great  system  of  fraternal  insurance. 

This  congress  was  brought  into  existence  through  the 
efforts  of  the  Supreme  Lodge  Ancient  Order  of  United 
Workmen.  At  the  preliminary  organization  Leroy  An- 
drus  was  elected  President,  and  R.  C.  Hill,  Secretary. 
Sixteen  orders  were  represented,  with  an  aggregate  mem- 
bership of  535,000,  and  carrying  insurance  to  the  amount 
of  $1,200,000,000. 

The  first  annual  session  was  held  at  Philadelphia, 
November  15th,  1887.  John  Haskell  Butler  was  chosen 
President  and  Oliver  M.  Shedd,  Secretary.  At  this  meet- 
ing the  following  resolution  was  adopted  : 

To  the  National  Fraternal  Congress : 

Your  committee  to  whom  was  referred  the  resolutions, 
presented  by  Representative  AY.  H.  Barnes  at  the  last 
session,  and  laid  over  for  consideration  at  this  session  of 
the  congress,  respectfully  report  that  they  recommend 
the  adoption  of  the  preamble  as  presented  by  Representa- 
tive Barnes,  which  reads  as  follows  : 

Whereas,  There  are  a  large  number  of  associations 
under  various  names,  presenting  to  the  public  proposi- 
tions of  various  characters,  that  have  arisen  since  and 
are  meeting  with  favorable  reception  because  of  the 
success  of  the  standard  legitimate  fraternal  benefit  orders, 
and  while  it  is  not  the  province  of  this  congress  to  either 
reflect  upon  or  endeavor  to  retard  the  growth  or  pros- 
perity of  any  organization,  yet  we  deem  it  a  duty  to  our- 
selves and  the  public  to  define  what  in  our  judgment  is 
a  fraternal  society,  and  to  be  recognized  as  such.  There- 
fore we  recommend  the  adoption  of  the  first  resolution 
amended  to  read  as  follows  : 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


101 


Resolved,  That  a  fraternal  society  is  an  organization 
working  under  a  ritual,  holding  regular  lodge  or  similar 
meetings,  where  the  purposes  are  confined  to  visitation  of 
the  sick,  relief  of  distress,  burial  of  dead,  protection  of 
widows  and  orphans,  education  of  the  orphan,  payment 
of  a  benefit  for  temporary  or  permanent  physical  dis- 
ability or  death,  and  where  these  principles  are  an 
obligated  duty  on  all  members,  to  be  discharged  without 
compensation  or  pecuniary  reward  ;  where  the  general 
membership  attends  to  the  general  business  of  the  order, 
and  where  a  fraternal  interest  in  the  welfare  of  each  other 
is  a  duty,  taught,  recognized,  and  practiced  as  the  motive 
and  bond  of  the  organization. 

The  last  session  of  this  congress,  it  being  the  seventh, 
was  held  at  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  November  21st,  1893.  At 
this  meeting  thirty-nine  societies  were  represented,  having 
an  aggregate  membership  of  about  1,400,000  members, 
and  which  had  paid  out  during  the  year  1892  something 
over  $28,812,925.87  to  their  beneficiaries. 

W.  A.  Northcott,  Head  Consul  of  the  Modern  Wood- 
men of  America,  responded  to  the  address  of  welcome 
delivered  by  the  mayor  at  this  session. 

Director  J.  W.  White  w^as  chosen  chairman  of  the  Com- 
mittee on  Legislation,  which  is  the  most  important  com- 
mittee of  the  congress. 

Director  J.  G.  Johnson  was  chosen  a  member  of  the 
Committee  on  Fraternal  Press,  and  prepared  the  address 
in  behalf  of  the  committee,  which  was  submitted  to  con- 
gress, on  account  of  the  Manderson-Hainer  bill. 

The  present  officers  and  committees  of  the  Fraternal 
Congress  are  as  follows  : 

OFFICERS. 

President. —  N.  S.  Boynton,  Port  Huron,  Mich. 
Vice-President.— A.  Will,  134  Fifth  avenue,  Pitts- 
burg, Penn. 


102 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


Secretary  and  Treasurer. —  0.  M.  Shedd,  Lock  Drawer 
W,  Poughkeepsie,  N.  Y. 

COMMITTEES. 

Constitution  and  Laws. —  L.  A.  Gratz,  131  Main  street, 
Louisville,  Ky.;  Julius  M.  Swain,  120  Tremont  street, 
Boston,  Mass.;  H.  H.  Miller,  First  National  Bank  build- 
ing, Chicago,  111.;  Albert  Morgan,  Columbus,  Penn.; 
Howard  H.  Morse,  142  West  125th  street,  New  York  City; 
Charles  Naylor,  118  North  Fifth  street,  Philadelphia, 
Penn.;  James  H.  Livingston,  628  Forest  street,  Baltimore, 
Md.;  W.  R.  Cooper,  Knoxville,  Tenn. 

National,  State,  and  Provincial  Legislation. —  John  W. 
White,  Rock  Falls,  111.;  M.  G.  Jeffries,  Janesville,  Wis.; 
D.  P.  Markey,  Port  Huron,  Mich.;  Dr.  Oronhyetkha, 
Toronto,  Canada  ;  Dr.  E.  R.  Hutchins,  Des  Moines,  Iowa  ; 
Dr.  J.  W.  P.  Bates,  1020  East  Eighth  street,  Baltimore, 
Md.;  J.  A.  Langfitt,  140  Diamond  street,  Pittsburg,  Penn.; 
Will  T.  Walker,  600  Minnesota  avenue,  Kansas  City,  Kas.; 
Lee  R.  Sanborn,  48  West  Eagle  street,  Buffalo,  N.  Y. 

Credentials  and  Finance. —  John  J.  Acker,  State  street, 
Albany,  N.  Y.;  Frank  N.  Gage,  Chicago,  111.;  T.  J.  Smith, 
180  West  Fourth  street,  Cincinnati,  Ohio. 

Statistics  and  Good  of  the  Order. —  J.  E.  Shepard,  Law- 
rence, Mass.;  D.  E.  Stevens,  208  and  210  South  High 
street,  Columbus,  Ohio  ;  M.  W.  Sackett,  Meadville,  Penn. 

Fra.ternal  Press. — W.  S.  Linton,  Saginaw,  Mich.;  Dr.  G. 
H.  Shields,  Hannibal,  Mo.;  J.  G.  Johnson,  Peabody,  Kas.; 
W.  R.  Spooner,  430  East  117th  street.  New  York  City  ; 
Emma  M.  Gillette,  302  F  street  N.  W.,  Washington,  D.  C. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


103 


Orders  who  are  Members  of  the  Fraternal 
Congress^  with  Secretaries^  Address. 


Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen. —  M.  W.  Sackett, 
Meadville,  Perm. 

Knights  of  Honor. —  B.  F.  Nelson,  St.  Louis,  Mo. 

American  Legion  of  Honor. —  Adam  Warnock,  200  Hunt- 
ington avenue,  Boston,  Mass. 

Royal  Arcanum. —  W.  0.  Robson,  Boston,  Mass. 

Knights  and  Ladies  of  Honor. —  C.  W.  Harvey,  Indian- 
apolis, Ind. 

Order  of  Chosen  Friends. —  T.  B.  Linn,  Indianapolis,  Ind. 

Endowment  Rank  Knights  of  Pythias. —  J  ohn  A.  Hinsey, 
14  and  16  Pacific  avenue,  Chicago,  111. 

Order  of  United  Friends. —  0.  M.  Shedd,  Poughkeepsie, 
N.  Y. 

Home  Circle.—  Julius  M.  Swain,  120  Tremont  street, 
Boston,  Mass. 

Knights  of  Maccabees. —  N.  S.  Boynton,  Port  Huron, 
Mich. 

Knights  of  the  Golden  Eagle. — William  Culbertson,  Boe 
527,  Philadelphia,  Penn. 

Knights  of  the  Golden  Rule.—  T.  J.  Smith,  180  West 
Fourth  street,  Cincinnati,  Ohio. 

Equitable  Aid  Union. —  John  T.  Irvin,  Columbus,  Penn. 

Improved  Order  Heptasophs. —  Edward  Erickson,  932 
Madison  avenue,  Baltimore,  Md. 

Supreme  Camp  Fraternal  Legion. —  M.  J.  Block,  1020 
East  Baltimore  street,  Baltimore,  Md. 

National  Union. — J.  W.  Myers,  Hartford  Block,  Toledo, 
Ohio. 

Order  Golden  Chain.— A.  Stanley  Weir,  220  North 
Charles  street,  Baltimore,  Md. 

Royal  Templars  of  Temperance. — E.  B.  Rew,  48  West 
Eagle  street,  Buffalo,  N.  Y. 


104 


Ths  Woodman' s  Hand-Book. 


Order  Pilgrim  Fathers. —  James  E.  Shepard,  Lawrence, 
Mass. 

Fraternal  Mystic  Circle. —  C.  E.  Kowley,  208  and  210 
South  High  street,  Columbus,  Ohio. 

Order  Mutual  Protection. —  G.  Del  Vecchio,  Room  310, 
269  Dearborn  street,  Chicago,  111. 

Royal  Society  of  Good  Fellows. —  D.  Wilson,  M.  D.,  180 
Summer  street,  Boston,  Mass. 

Northern  Mutuul  Relief  Association. — Walter  Wright,  10 
Tremont  street,  Boston,  Mass. 

Protected  Home  Circle. —  P.  D.  Stratton,  Sharon,  Penn. 

Order  of  Golden  Cross. — W.  P.  Cooper,  Knoxville,  Tenn. 

Modern  Woodmen  of  America. —  C.  W.  Hawes,  Fulton, 
111. 

Iowa  Legion  of  Honor. —  J.  H.  Helm,  Box  350  Cedar 
Rapids,  Iowa. 

Legion  of  the  Red  Cross. —  John  B.  Treibler,  612  Van 
Buren  street,  Wilmington,  Del. 

Woodmen  of  the  World. — John  T.  Yates,  206  Sheeley 
Block,  Omaha,  Neb. 

Knights  of  St.  John  and  Malta. —  J.  L.  McElroy,  515 
East  119th  street,  New  York  City. 

Artisans'  Order  of  Mutual  Protection. —  Louis  Maloney, 
538  Taskee  street,  Philadelphia,  Penn. 

Independent  Order  of  Foresters  of  Ontario. —  John  A.  Mc- 
Gillivray,  corner  Yonge  and  King  streets,  Toronto, 
Canada. 

National  Provident  Union. — William  J.  Gorsuch,  Room 
148,  No.  41  Park  Row,  New  York  City. 

Order  of  Shield  of  Honor. — William  T.  Henry,  205  East 
Fayette  street,  Baltimore,  Md. 

Royal  League. —  C.  A.  Warren,  Opera  House  Building, 
Chicago,  111. 

Order  of  Select  Friends. — W.  J.  Linn,  Fort  Scott,  Kas. 
Fraternal  Aid  Association. — Will  T.  Walker,  600  Union 
avenue,  Kansas  City,  Kas. 


Perry  Perkins,  Member  Auditing  Committee, 
Des  Moines,  Iowa. 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


105 


American  Order  of  Home  Protection. —  John  W.Eddy, 
Helena,  Montana. 

Xational  Reserve  Association. —  J.  C.  Hennessey,  Mis- 
souri Pacific  Railroad,  Kansas  City,  Mo. 

ORDERS  NOT  MEMBERS  OF  FRATERNAL  CONGRESS. 

Catholic  Benevolent  Legion. —  .John  D.  Carroll,  38  and 
40  Court  street,  Brooklyn,  X.  Y. 

Free  Sons  of  Israel. —  H.  J.  Goldsmith,  27  Second  ave- 
nue, Nev\'  York  City. 

Benai  Brith. —  S.  Hamburger,  Fifty-seventh  street  and 
Third  avenue.  New  York  City. 

Golden  Star  Fraternity. —  J.  B.  Faitoute,  22  Clinton 
street,  Newark,  N.  J. 

Northwestern  Legion  of  Honor. —  D.  M.  Rowland,  Ma- 
rengo, Iowa. 

Empire  State  Degree  of  Honor. —  H.  W.  Seymour,  Stock- 
ton, N.  Y. 

Independent  Order  Of  Foresters  of  Illinois. — T.  W.  Saun- 
ders, Rooms  G  and  7,  No.  53  Dearborn  street,  Chicago,  111. 

Catholic  Mutual  Benevolent  Association. —  C.  J.  Hickey, 
543  Madison  street,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 


o        .  o 


I 


Statistics  of  Fraternal  Insurance  Societies. 


AMERICAN  LEGION  OF  HONOR. 

John  M.  Gwinnel,  Supreme  Commander,  Newark,  N.  J.;  salary, 
$3,000. 

Adam  Warnock,  Supreme  Secretary,  Boston,  Mass.;  salary,  $3,900. 
George  W.  Kendrick,  Jr.,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Philadelphia, 
Penn. ;  salary,  $2,500. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order,  December  18th,  1878. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  September  6th,  1879. 
Issue  certificates  from  $1,000  to  $3,000  ;  graded  rates  : 


Age.  Rate  on  $1,000. 
18  and  29  $  .40 

29  and  30  42 

30  and  31  44 

31  and  32  46 

32  and  33  48 

33  and  34.    .50 

34  and  35  52 

35  and  36  54 


Age.       Rate  on  $1,000. 

36  and  37  1  .56 

37  and  38  58 

38  and  39  60 

39  and  40  62 

40  and  41  64 

41  and  42  66 

42  and  43  68 


Age.       Rate  on  $1,000. 


43  and  44  $  .70 

44  and  45  72 

45  and  46  74 

46  and  47  76 

47  and  48  78 

48  and  49  80 

49  and  50  84 


Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  one  assessment  each  year. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $58,854.08. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.00. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  15.3;  1892,  16;  1893, 
16 ;  1894,  16. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  36  years ;  January  1st,  1895,  36  + 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  30 ;  1892,  32  ;  1893,  36  ;  1894,  36. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $14.96 ;  35  years, 
$18.36;  40  years,  $21.76.  In  1894,  30  years,  $14.96;  35  years,  $18.36; 
40  years,  $21.76. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $3,069,865  ;  1894,  $2,751,079. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $159,473,000. 

Totcol  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $142,901,500. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
62,076. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
56,060. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  1,085;  January 
1st,  1895,  1,086. 


110 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


ANCIENT  ORDER  OF  UNITED  AVORKMEN. 

Lewis  L.  Troy,  Supreme  Master  Workman,  Chicago,  111.;  salary, 
$1,000. 

M.  W.  Sackett,  Supreme  Recorder,  Meadville,  Penn.;  salary, 
$3,000. 

John  J.  Acker,  Supreme  Receiver,  Albany,  N.  Y.;  salary,  $400. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  October  27th,  1868. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  1871. 

Issue  certificates  for  $2,000,  at  an  uniform  rate  of  $1.00  per  assess- 
ment. 

Expense  of  management  varies  in  difTerent  states. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $561,591.66. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.67. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  9.72  ;  1892,  10.19 ;  1893, 
10.11 ;  1894,  10.43. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  40  +  years ;  January  1st,  1895,  41 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  19;  1892,  20;  1893,  20;  1894, 

20. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $10.00;  35  years, 
$10.00 ;  40  years,  $10.00.  In  1894,  30  years,  $10.21 ;  35  years,  $10.21 ;  40 
years,  $10.21. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $6,479,175.38;  1894,  $7,116,807.99. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $657,550,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $682,742,000. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
328,775. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
341,371. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  4,831  ;  1895,  4,973. 

ARTISANS'  ORDER  MUTUAL  PROTECTION. 

Samuel  Biggin,  Most  Excellent  Master  Artisan,  Tacomy,  Penn. 
Louis  Maloney,  Most  Excellent  Recorder,  Philadelphia,  Penn.. 
salary,  $2,000. 

John  F.  Vanleer,  Jr.,  Most  Excellent  Cashier,  Philadelphia, 
Penn. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  May  1st,  1873. 

Issue  certificates  for  $1,000  and  $2,000  at  the  following  rates  : 

f 1,000.     f -2.000.  m,000.  S2,000. 

Between  18  and  30. .  .$3.50  $5.75  Between  40  and  45. .  .$4.50  $7.75 
Between  30  and  35.. .  3.75  6.25  Between  45  and  50. ..  5.25  9.25 
Between  35  and  40. . .  4.00  6.75 

No  other  payments  are  required  and  no  assessments  made.  Each 
member  makes  but  four  payments  a  year,  and  the  dues  never  increase, 
no  matter  how  many  deaths  occur. 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


Ill 


Pays  in  addition  $5  per  week  sick  benefits  for  twenty  weeks  in  a 
year,  wliich  amount  is  not  deducted  from  the  face  of  the  certificate. 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  of  80  cents  per 
annum,  initiation,  benefit  certificate  and  supply  fees. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $3,380. 
'    Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.00. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  10;  1892,  11;  1893,  5; 

1894,  6^. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  37  years  ;  January  1st,  1895,  38  years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  11 ;  1892,  14;  1893,  6;  1894,  7. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $14.00 ;  35  years. 
$16.00 ;  40  years,  $18.00.  In  1894,  30  years,  |14.00  ;  35  years,  $16.00 ;  40 
years,  $18.00. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $15,000 ;  1894,  $18,500. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $2,725,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $3,093,000. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894,  2,521. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895,  2,804. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  28 ;  January  1st, 

1895,  28. 

ECLECTIC  ASSEMBLY. 

A.  Palmer,  Supreme  Secretary,  Bradford,  Penn. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order,  organized  November  14th,  1892  ; 
chartered  January  3d,  1893. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  May  1st,  1893. 

Issue  certificates  for  $500,  $1,000,  $1,500,  $2,000,  $2,500,  $3,000. 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  membership  fees,  certifi- 
cate fees,  quarterly  dues,  and  25  per  cent  of  assessments  for  first  two 
years  of  life  of  certificate. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $1,349.87. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $6.39. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  — ;  1892,  — ;  1893  — ; 
1894,  i. 

Average  age,  January  1st,  1894,  36.7  years;  January  1st,  1895,  37.7 
years. 

Number  of  assessments,  year  1891,  — ;  1892,  — ;  1893,  8;  1894,  12. 
Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000   in  1893,  30  years,  .77  ;   35  years, 
.82;  40  years,  .90.    In  1894,  30  years,  .77 ;  35  years,  .82 ;  40  years,  .90. 
Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  none  ;  1894,  $1,500. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $180,500. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $389,500. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 113. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895,  313. 
Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  4;  1895,  8. 
Have  an  annual  premium  divided  into  equal  monthly  payments. 


112 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


EMPIRE  KNIGHTS  OF  RELIEF. 

E.  D.  Angell,  Supreme  President,  Buffalo,  N.  Y.;  salary,  $600. 
P.  E.  Hunger,  Supreme  Secretary,  Buffalo,  N.  Y.;  salary,  $2,500. 
Henry  L.  King,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Buffalo,  N,  Y.;  salary,  $600. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  1889  (under  incorporation  1891). 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  January  1st,  1890. 
Issue  certificates  for  $1,000,  $2,000,  $3,000. 


MONTHLY  ASSESSMENTS. 


Age. 

$1,000. 

Age. 

$1,000. 

Age. 

$1,000. 

Age. 

$1,000. 

Age. 

$1,000, 

20 

.,$  .50 

28 

.,$  .66 

35    .  . 

.$  .83 

42 

,  $1.04 

49 

. .$1.35 

21 

,  .52 

29. . . 

..  .68 

36 ... . 

..  .85 

43,  ,  , 

.  1.07 

50,  ,  , 

.,  1.4C 

22 

.  .  .53 

30 

.70 

37 

.88 

44 

.  1.10 

51  , 

,  1.50 

23 

.55 

31 

.  .72 

38 

,  .90 

45 . .  . 

1.15 

52 

1.6C 

24 

.  .57 

32 

39  , 

.  .93 

46 

1.20 

53.  .  , 

.,  1.7C 

25 

,  .60 

33  , 

.  .  .77 

40. . . . 

.  .95 

47. . . . 

.  1.25 

54  , 

..  1.8C 

26 

,  .62 

34 

.80 

41 

..  1.00 

48. . . . 

, .  1.30 

55. . . 

..  1.90 

27,  , 

.  .  .64 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  or  general 
assessment  of  $2.00  per  year;  also  application  fees. 
Cost  of  management  1894,  $7,787.70. 
Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $4.51. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  0  ;  1892,  5  ;  1893,  6  ; 
1894,  3. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  32  years;  January  1st,  1895,  33^ 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  12;  1892,  12;  1893,  12;  1894,  12. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $10.40;  35  years, 
$11.96;  40  years,  $13.40.  In  1894,  30  years,  $10.40  ;  35  years,  $11.96;  40 
years,  $13.40. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $15,000;  18.-^4,  $13,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $3,181,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $4,342,000. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 1,401. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895,  2,046. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  Jaauary  1st,  1894,  75  ;  1895,  99. 

EQUITABLE  AID  UNION. 

Albert  Morgan,  Supreme  President,  Colutnbus,  Penn.;  salary, 
$1,800. 

James  W.  Merritt,  Supreme  Secretary,  Columbus,  Penn.;  salary, 
$1,350. 

E.  Cook,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Columbus,  Penn.;  salary,  $850. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  April  25th,  1879. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  July  23d,  1879. 


1 


L 


Committee  on  Ritual  and  Laws,  1892. 

1.  Joseph  B.  Kearns,  Fulton,  111.  2.   Dr.  E.  R.  Hutchins,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

3.   Judge  A.  M.  Cavan,  El  Paso,  111. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


113 


Issue  certificates  in  amounts  from  $325  to  $3,000.  Amount  of  life 
benefits  regulated  by  age  of  members  instead  of  graded  assessments, 
according  to  the  following  table  : 


Applications  Between 
the  Ages  of — 

Expectancy 

in  Years 
and  lOOths. 

By  Paying 
$1.00  Entitles 
Them  to  — 

By  Paying  50 
cts.  Entitles 
Them  to  — 

By  Paying  25 
cts.  Entitles 
Them  to  — 



$Q  000 

fRi  ^00 

,<fi750  00 

%\)  1  Kjyj  \J\J 

21  and  22  

737  50 

40  1  7 

9  QOO 

I,'±OU 

725  00 

23  and  24   

QQ  4Q 

9  8=;o 

1  49^^ 

712  50 

24  and  25  

Qft  ftl 

9  800 

1  400 

700  00 

25  and  26  

Qft  19 
OO. 

9  7'=i0 

ill,  t  0\J 

I,0  /  O 

687  50 

26  and  27  

4Q 
ot  .'to 

9  700 

1  Q  1=^0 
J ,  oou 

675  00 

27  and  28   - 

oO.  /  o 

9  fi^O 

1  H9^ 

662  50 

28  and  29  

QA  1  Q 
OO.  lo 

9  ftOO 

1  QOO 

f{.=iO  00 

29  and  30  

OO.  OO 

9  ^^0 

1  97^ 

OO  /  o\y 

30  and  31  

QA  ftQ 

9  t^OO 

1  9'^fl 

fi95  00 

31  and  32  

QQ  Q9 

1  99"=^ 

612  50 

32  and  33   

QQ  91 
OO.Zl 

9  400 

1  900 

^<00  OO 

33  and  34  

Q9  c^A 
OZ.OU 

9  Qc;0 

1  17*^ 

'^87  f\0 
OO  1  0\} 

34  and  35  

Ql  7Q 

ol.  /o 

9  QOO 

1  1  f^O 
1,  JOU 

f^7^  00 

35  and  36  

Ql  07 

9  9=;o 

1  1  9^^ 

"^(^9  '^O 

36  and  37  

30.35 

2,200 

1,100 

550  00 

37  and  38   

29.62 

2,150 

1,075 

537  50 

38  and  39   

28.90 

2,100 

1,050 

525  00 

39  and  40  

28.18 

2,050 

1,025 

512  50 

40  and  41  

27.45 

2,000 

1,000 

500  OO 

41  and  42  

26.72 

1,950 

975 

487  50 

42  and  43  

25.99 

1,900 

950 

475  00 

AO  AA 

25.27 

1,850 

925 

462  50 

44  and  45  

24  54 

1,800 

900 

450  00 

45  and  46  

23.81 

1,750 

875 

437  50 

46  and  47  

23.08 

1,700 

850 

425  00^ 

47  and  48  

22.36 

1,650 

825 

412  50 

48  and  49  

21.63 

1,600 

800 

400  00 

49  and  50  

20.91 

1,550 

775 

387  50 

50  and  51  

20.20 

1,500 

750 

375  00 

51  and  52  

19.49 

1,450 

725 

362  50 

52  and  53  

18.79 

1,400 

700 

350  00 

18.09 

1,350 

675 

337  50 

54  and  55  

17.40 

1,300 

650 

325  00 

The  Beneficiary  Fund  is  derived  from  assessments  upon  the  insured 
members  in  sums  of  25  cents  to  $1.00,  according  to  age  and  amount 
of  insurance  as  denoted  by  the  table. 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  centage  of  assess- 
ments. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $55,613.41. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.78. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  $13.80  ;  1892,  $14.40  : 
1893,  $16.00;  1894,  $16.00. 


114 


The  Woodmmi^s  Hand-Booh. 


Averag-e  age,  January  1st,  1891,  41.28  years  ;  January  1st,  1895, 
41.51  years. 

Number  of  assessments,  year  1891,  23;  1892,  28;  1893,  29  ;  1894,  18. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $11.60;  35  years, 
$12.89;  40  years,  $14.50.  In  1894,  30  years,  $14.00  ;  35  years,  $15.56  ; 
40  years,  $17.50. 

Losses  paid  in  1893,  $850,583;  1894,  $794,981.66. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $47,594,725. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $43,511,010. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
31,168. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
29,203. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  867  ;  January 
1st,  1895,  880. 


FRATERNAL  AID  ASSOCIATION. 

Will  T.  Walker,  General  President,  Kansas  City,  Kas. ;  salary, 
$600. 

E.  Rouse LL,  General  Secretary,  Lawrence,  Kas.;  salary,  $1,200. 

L.  C.  Stine,  General  Treasure)',  Ottawa,  Kas.;  salary,  $100. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  October  14th,  1890. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  April  1st,  1891. 

Issue  certificates  for  $1,000,  $2,000,  and  $3,000,  at  following  rates  : 

Age  at  Nearest  Age  at  Nearest  Age  at  Nearest 

Birthday.  $1,000.  Birthday.  $1,000.        Birtliday.  $1,000. 

18  to  1^6  $.45         46  to  47  $.75         52  $1.30 

27  1o  31  50  48   .80         53   1.45 

32  to  37  55  49  90  54   1.65 

38  to  40  60  50   1.00         55   1.85 

41  to  45  65  51   1.15 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  setting  aside  15  per  cent 
of  all  benefit  funds  collected  and  certificate  fees. 
Cost  of  management  1894,  $8,861.43. 
Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.83. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,5;  1892,2.86;  1893, 
2.43;  1894,  2.27. 

Average  age  not  reported. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  6  ;  1892,  6  ;  1893,  10  ;  1894,  8. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $5.00;  35  years, 
$5.50;  40  years,  $6.00.  In  1894,  30  years,  $4.00;  35  years,  $4.40;  40 
years,  $4.80. 

Losses  paid  in  1893,  $28,459;  1894,  $28,277.09. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1884,  $6,224,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st.  1895,  $8,689,000. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894,  3,156. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


115 


Total  membership  in  absolute  o'ood  standing  January  1st,  1895,  4,826. 
Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894, 115 ;  January  1st, 
1895,  162. 

Exclude  all  hazardous  risks,  Southern  States,  and  cities  of  200,000 
population.  Pay  one-half  of  benefit  in  case  of  total  and  permanent 
disability,  and  remainder  at  end  of  five  years. 

FRATERNAL  LEGION. 

George  M.  Ballard,  Supreme  Commander,  Newark,  N.  J.;  sal. 
ary,  $100. 

M.  J.  Block,  Supreme  Adjutant,  Baltimore,  Md.;  salary,  $600. 
C.  H.  Thomas,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Baltimore,  Md. ;  salary,  $200. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  October  1st,  1881. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied.  May  27th,  1883. 

Issue  certificates  for  $500,  $1,000,  $2,000,  and  $3,000,  according  to  the 


following  table  of  rates  on  $1,000  : 

Between  Ages  of 

Rate. 

Between  Ages  of 

Rate. 

Between  Ages  of 

Rate. 

21  and  22  .  , . . 

S  .  38 

33  and  34  .... 

.$  .60 

.$  .87 

22  and  23 

,  .40 

34  and  35  

.62 

45  and  46 

.  .90 

23  and  24 

.42 

35  and  36 

.  .64 

46  and  47  .  .  .  . 

.  .94 

24  and  25  ,  ,  .  , 

.43 

36  and  37  ,  ,  .  . 

.  .66 

47  and  48 

.  .97 

25  and  26  ,  .  .  . 

.44 

37  and  38  ,   .  , 

.  .69 

48  and  49 

.  1.01 

26  and  27. 

.46 

38  and  39 

.  .71 

49  and  50 

.  1.06 

27  and  28 

.48 

39  and  40 

.74 

.  1.10 

28  and  29 

,  .50 

40  and  41 

.  .76 

51  and  52  

.  1.16 

29  and  30  ,  ,  .  . 

.52 

41  and  42 

,  .79 

52  and  53  

.  1.21 

30  and  31  ,  .  .  . 

.54 

42  and  43  

.  .81 

53  and  54 

.  130 

31  and  32  

.  .56 

43  and  44      .  . 

,  .84 

.  1.37 

32  and  33 

,  .58 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  assessments. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $4,631.11. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.39. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  10.5  ;  1892,  10.2  ;  1893, 
10 ;  1894,  11.3. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  38.5  years  ;  Januar^^  1st,  1895,  37.8 
years. 

Number  of  assessments,  year  1891,  23;  1892,  25;  1893,  28;  1894,  22. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $11.22;  35  years^ 
$15.02;  40  years,  $17.82.  In  1894,  30  years,  $9.68;  35  years,  $11.88; 
40  years,  $14.04. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $63,258.88. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $3,895,500. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $3,692,000. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
2,657. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
2,585. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  53  ;  1895,  52. 


116 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


FRATERNAL  MYSTIC  CIRCLE, 


D,  E.  Stevens,  Supreme  Mystic  Ruler,  Columbus,  Ohio;  salary, 
$4,000. 

Charles  E.  Rowley,  Supreme  Recorder,  Columbus,  Ohio ;  sal- 
ary, $1,500. 

J.  G.  Reinhard,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Columbus,  Ohio;  salary, 
$600. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  January  1st,  1885. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  September  5th,  1885. 

Issue  certificates  in  two  circles.  Circle  "  A  "  to  men  only.  Circle 
B  "  to  men  and  women. 

In  Circle  "A"  certificates  are  issued  in  amounts  of  $1,500  and 
$3,000.  In  Circle  ''B,"  $500,  $1,000  and  $1,500.  Ages  covered  in 
either  circle,  18  to  49  years. 


Age. 
18  to  21. 
22  , 

23   

24   

25  

26  

27  

28  

29  

30   


Rate. 
$1.10 
.  1.14 
.  1.18 
.  1.22 
.  1.26 
.  1.30 
.  1.36 
.  1.42 
.  1.48 
.  1.54 


CIRCLE  A. 
Age. 

31  

32  

33  

34  

35  

36  

37  

38  

39  

40  


Rate. 

Age. 

Rate. 

B1.60 

41  .... 

,  .  ,  $2.40 

1.69 

42    ,  ,  , 

.  .  .  2.50 

1.72 

43  

2.62 

1.78 

44      ,  .  . 

,   ,  ,  .  2.74 

1.86 

45  

...  .  2.86 

1.94 

46 

3.00 

2.02 

47  , 

.  3.14 

2  10 

48  ... 

  3.30 

2.20 

49   

3.46 

2.30 

Age. 
18  to  21, 

22  

23  

24  

25  

26  

27  

28   

29  

30   


Rate. 


.69 
.72 
.75 
.78 
.81 
.84 
.87 
.90 
.93 


CIRCLE  B. 


Age. 

31.. 

32., 

33.. 

34. , 

35. . 

36., 

37., 

38. . 

39. 

40. . 


Rate.  Age.  Rate. 

$0.96        41  $1.44 

.  1.02        42   1.50 

,  1.05        43   1.59 

,  1.08        44   1.68 

,a.ll        45   1.74 

.  1.17        46   1.83 

,  1.23        47   1.92 

1.26        48    1.98 

,  1.32        49   2.10 

.  1.38 


Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  not  exceeding  12i  per 
cent  of  assessments. 

Cost  of  management  1893,  ^30,643. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  not  reported. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  5.2;  1892,  5.4;  1893, 
5.20. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  33  years. 
Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  10  ;  1892,  12  ;  1893,  13. 
Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $8.06  ;  35  years,  $9.62  ; 
40  years,  $11.96. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


117 


Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $158,526. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $29,704,750. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing-  January  1st,  1894, 
12,674. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  407. 


HOME  CIRCLE. 

Uriah  W.  Tompkins,  Supreme  Leader  261  Broadway,  N.  Y.;  sal- 
ary, $300. 

Julius  M.  Swain,  Supreme  Secretary,  Boston,  Mass.;  salary, 
$2,200. 

John  Haskell  Butler,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Boston,  Mass.;  sal- 
ary, $500. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  October  2d,  1879. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  January  1st,  1881. 
Issue  certificates  in  amounts  from  $500  to  $3,500,  at  graded  rates, 
pro  rata,  as  follows  on  $1,000  : 


Between  Ages  of 

Rate. 

Between  Ages  of 

Rate. 

Between  Ages  of 

Rate. 

18  and  19  

$  .24 

29  and  30 

,$  .46 

40  and  41 

$  .68 

19  and  20  

.26 

30  and  31  

.48 

41  and  42 

.72 

20  and  21  

.28 

31  and  32  

,  .50 

42  and  43 

.  .76 

21  and  22  ,  . .  , 

.30 

32  and  33  

.  .52 

43  and  44 

.  .80 

22  and  23  .... 

.32 

33  and  34  

.54 

44  and  45  

.84 

23  and  24  

.34 

34  and  35 

.56 

45  and  46 

.  .88 

24  and  25 

.36 

35  and  36  

.58 

46  and  47  

.92 

25  and  26 

.38 

36  and  37   

.  .60 

47  and  48. 

.96 

26  and  27  

.40 

37  and  38  

.62 

48  and  49 

.  1.00 

27  and  28    ,  ,  . 

.42 

38  and  39  .... 

.  .64 

49  and  50 

,  1.04 

28  and  29 

.44 

39  and  40 

.  .66 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  one  assessment  upon  the 
membership,  same  amount  and  collected  same  as  benefit  fund  assess- 
ment. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $11,656.13*. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.67. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,7;  1892,  8.50;  1893, 
8.50;  1894,  9.70. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  36  +  years  ;  January  1st,  1895,  36 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  16;  1892,  17;  1893,  18;  1894,  19. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $8.64;  35  years, 
$10.44 ;  40  years,  $12.24.  In  1894,30  years,  $9.12  ;  35  years,  $11.02  ;  40 
years,  $12.92. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $144,500  ;  1894,  $156,000. 


*  Cost  of  management  includes  every  expenditure  for  whatever  purpose,  including 
books,  regalia,  and  supplies  sold  to  the  order,  and  should  be  called  an  expense. 


118 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $14,837,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  ]st,  1895,  $15,138,000. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
6,766. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
7,183. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  178 ;  January 
1st,  1895,  182. 

HOME  FORUM  BENEFIT  ORDER. 

Dr.  p.  L.  McKinnie,  Grand  President,  Evanston,  111. 

L.  E.  Pish,  Grand  Secretary,  56  Fifth  avenue,  Chicago,  111. 

S.  J.  Caswell,  Grand  Treasurer,  Rockford,  111. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  January  1st,  1893. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  March  1st,  1893. 

Issue  certificates  for  |500,  $1,000,  and  $2,000,  at  the  following  rates  : 


,  From  $500  to  $2,000  OiUii.  

Age  at  Nearest 

Age  at  Nearest 

Age  at  Nearest 

Birthday. 

$1,000. 

Birthday.  $1,000 

Birthday. 

$1,000 

From  16  to  24  years. . 

.40 

46  years. . . .|  .60 

51  years  

$  .80 

From  25  to  33  years. . 

..  .45 

47  years  60 

52  years  

.90 

From  34  to  37  years. . 

..  .45 

48  years  65 

53  years . . . . 

1.00 

From  38  to  39  years. . 

..  .50 

49  years  70 

54  years  

1.15 

Prom  40  to  41  years. . 

.50 

50  years  75 

55  years  

1.25 

Prom  44  to  45  years . . 

. .  .55 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  annual  dues. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $6,766.73. 

Cost  of  management  per  member,  1894,  66  cents. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  — ;  1892,  —  ;  1893,  2.7  ; 

1894,  1.56. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  331  years;  January  1st,  1895,  33i 
years. 

Number  of  assessments,  year  1891  —;  1892  —  ;  1893,  7  ;  1894,  7. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1  000  in  1893,  30  years,  $3.00;  35  years; 
$3.00;  40  years,  $3.50.  In  1894,  30  years,  $3.00  ;  35  years,  $3.00;  40 
years,  $3.50. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $12,000  ;  1894,  $22  000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $5,100,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $16,645,500. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
3,346. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
10,196. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894, 102  ;  January  1st, 

1895,  400. 

Admits  men  and  veomen  on  equal  terms  ,  gives  permanent  disabil- 
ity benefits  for  loss  of  hand,  foot,  or  eye  from  accident. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


119 


lOAVA  LEGION  OF  HONOR. 

Dr.  E.  R.  Hutchins,  Grand  President,  Des  Moines,  Iowa ;  salary, 
$800. 

J.  H.  Hel:^!,  Grand  Secretary,  Cedar  Rapids,  Iowa  ;  salary,  $1,200 
John  Helsixger,  Grand  Treasurer,  Sabula,  Iowa ;  salary,  $100. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  March  19th,  1879. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  March  10th,  1880. 
Issue  certificates  for  $1,000  and  $2,000  at  the  rate  of  fifty  cents  on 
$1,000  and  $1.00  on  $2,000;  ages  over  20  and  under  45  years. 
Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax. 
Cost  of  management  1S94,  $7,854.35. 
Cost  of  management  per  member  1804,  $1.26. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  —  :  1892,  —  :  1893. 
8.50;  1894,  7.25. 

Average  age  January  Ist.  1894,  38  years  ;  January  1st,  1895,  38 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  18  ;  1892,  19  ;  1893.  17  ;  1894.  15. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1S93.  30  years,  $8.50 ;  35  years.  $8.50  ; 
40  years,  $8.50.  In  1894,  30  years.  $7.50:  35  years.  $7.50:  40  years, 
$7.50. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $105,500.  1894,  $91,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $12,353,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $12,609,000. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894. 
6,210. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  .January  1st,  1895, 
6.350. 

Xumber  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st.  1894.  187  :  .January  1st. 
1895,  191. 

IMPROVED  ORDER  HEPTASOPHS. 

F.  L.  Brown,  Supreme  Archon,  Scranton,  Penn.  :  salary,  $1,500. 
Dr.  E.  Eareckson,  Supreme  Secretary,  Baltimore,  Md.  ;  salary, 
12,000. 

GUS.  Brown,  Supreme  Treasurer.  Baltimore.  Md.  ;  salary,  $600. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  August  2Sth,  1878. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied.  June  6th.  1S79. 

Issue  certificates  in  amounts  from  $1,000  to  S5,0U0,  graded  rates, 
pro  rata,  as  follows  : 


120  The  Woodman's  Hand-Boo k. 

Between  the  ages  of       Rate  per  $1,000.  Between  the  ages  of        Rate  per  $1,000. 

21  and  22  |  .50         38  and  39  $  .82 

22  and  23  51         39  and  40  85 

23  and  24  52         40  and  41  88 

24  and  25  53         41  and  42  91 

25  and  26   54         42  and  43  94 

26  and  27  56         43  and  44   98 

27  and  28  58         44  and  45   1.02 

28  and  29  60         45  and  46   1.06 

29  and  30  62         46  and  47   l.n 

30  and  31  64         47  and  48   1.16 

31  and  32  66         48  and  49   1.21 

32  and  33  68         49  and  50   1.27 

33  and  34  70         50  and  51   1 .33 

34  and  35  72         51  and  52   1.40 

35  and  36  74         52  and  53   1.47 

36  and  37  76         53  and  54   1.54 

37  and  38  79         54  and  55  1.62 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  of  $1.00  per 
annum  and  special  assessments,  same  as  mortuary,  if  needed. 
Cost  of  management  1894,  $28,661. 
(^-'ost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $l,46i. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  8  ;  1892,  8 ;  1893,  7.10  ; 
1894,  8. 

Average  age,  January  1st,  1894,  37.4  years;  January  1st,  1895,  38.1 
years. 

Number  of  assessments,  year  1891,  9  ;  1892,10;  1893,9;  1894,  10 
mortuary  ;  1  expense. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $5.76;  35  years, 
$6.60;  40  years,  $7.92.  In  1894,  30  .years,  $7.04;  35  years,  8.04;  40 
years,  $9  68. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $179,000;  1894,  $285,000. 
Total  amount  of  insuj'ance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $30,224,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $36,799,000. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
15,069. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
19,563. 

Number  of  subordinate  conclaves  January  1st,  1894,  233  ;  January 
1st,  1895,  276. 


INDEPENDENT  ORDER  OF  FORESTERS. 

Dr.  Oronhyteka,  Supreme  Chief  Ranger,  Toronto,  Canada ;  sal- 
ary, $8,000. 

John  A.  McGillivray,  Supreme  Recorder,  Toronto,  Canada; 
salary,  $5,000. 

T.  G.  Davey,  Supreme  Treasurer,  London,  Ontario ;  salary, 
$2,000. 


The  Woodman' s  Haiid-Book. 


121 


Commenced  business  as  an  order  June,  1874. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  October,  1875. 

Issue  certificates  for  $500,  $1,000,  $2,000  and  $3,000,  g-raded,  pro 
rata. 


Age. 

$1,000. 

Age. 

$1,000. 

Age. 

$1,000. 

Age. 

$1,000. 

Age. 

$1,000. 

18... 

.$  .60 

26  . 

..$  .68 

34.. 

..$  .76 

41. . . 

$  .90 

48.  . 

..$1.22 

19... 

.  .61 

27.  . 

..  .69 

35. . 

. .  .78 

42.. 

.  .92 

49.  . 

..  1.35 

20... 

.  .62 

28.  . 

..  .70 

36.  . 

. .  .80 

43  , 

.95 

50.. 

..  2.50 

21. . . 

.  .63 

29  . 

..  .71 

37  . 

. .  .82 

44... 

.  .98 

51.  . 

..  2.60 

22... 

.64 

30  . 

..  .72 

38. . 

..  .84 

52.. 

..  2.70 

23.  .. 

.  .65 

31.  . 

..  .73 

39.. 

..  .86 

46.  .. 

.  1.07 

53.  . 

..  2.85 

24.  .. 

.  .66 

32. . 

..  .74 

40. . 

. .  .88 

47. . . 

.  1.14 

54.  . 

..  3.00 

25  . . . 

.  .67 

33.  . 

..  .75 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  of  50  cents  per 
annum  and  five  per  cent  of  assessments. 
Cost  of  management  1894,  $133,156.92. 
Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $2.13. 

Deaths  per  1,OUO  beneficial  members  in  1891,  6.40  ;  1892,  6.23  ;  1893, 
5.45;  1894,  5.39. 

Averag"e  age  January  1st,  1894,  35  years;  January  1st,  1895,  34.80 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  12;  1892,  12;  1893,  12;  1894,  12. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $8.64  ;  35  years,  $9.36 ; 
40  years,  $10.56  In  1894,  30  j^ears,  $8.64;  35  years,  $9.36;  40  years, 
$10.56. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $392,185  ;  1894,  $511,162.30. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $67,781,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $86,506,500. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
54,484. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
70,055. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894, 1,503  ;  January  1st, 
1895,  1,875, 

Amount  in  surplus  fund  March  1st,  1895,  $1,258,811.44. 


KNIGHTS  AND  LADIES  GOLDEN  STAR. 

John  L.  Armitage,  Supreme  President,  Newark,  N.  J.  ;  salai-y, 
$400. 

Rev.  G.  p.  Lacey,  Supreme  Secretary,  Newark,  N.  J.  ;  salary, 
$1,400. 

George  W.  Downs,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Madison,  N.  J.  ;  salary, 
$400. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  1884. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied  January  1st,  1885. 

Issue  Certificates  for  $50,  $100,  $150,  $200,  $500,  $1,000,  $1,500,  $2,000. 


122 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


$50  and  $200,  inclusive,  are  funeral  benefit  classes,  and  pay  fixed 
monthly  rates. 

$500  and  $2,000  are  general  classes,  and  p-iy  assessments  as  per  the 
necessities  of  the  beneficiary  fund. 

The  members  in  the  general  classes  have  special  benefits,  as,  for 
instance,  disability,  total  disability,  and  annuity  clauses  included  in 
their  certificates. 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  of  25  cents 
quarterly. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $6,134.78. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  average,  $1.00. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  9;  1892,  10  ;  1893,  12  ; 
1894,  13. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  41  years ;  January  1st,  1895,  40  years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  21 ;  1892,  23  ;  1893,  24;  1894,  24. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $10.56;  35  years, 
$12.96;  40  years,  $15.36.  In  1894,  30  years,  $10.56;  35  years,  $12.96; 
40  years,  $15.36. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $S0,332.32;  1894,  $78,179.59. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $5,793,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $5,649,000. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1891, 
5,601. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
5,921. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  68;  1895,  71. 


KNIGHTS  AND  LADIES  OF  HONOR. 

L.  B.  LOCKARD,  Supreme  Protector,  Bradford,  Penn.;  salary,  $2,500. 
C.  W.  Harvey,  Supreme  Secretary,  Indianapolis,  Ind.;  salary, 
$2,500. 

C.  F.  Dudley,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Indianapolis,  Ind.;  salary, 
$2,r,00. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  September  6th,  1877. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  January  4th,  1878. 
Issue  certificates  for  $500,  $1,000,  $2,000,  and  $3,000,  the  following 
showing  rate  on  $1,000  : 


Prom  18  to  25  years  $  .30 

Prom  25  to  30  years  35 

Prom  30  to  35  years  40 

Prom  35  to  40  years  45 

Prom  40  to  45  years  50 


Prom  45  to  46  years  $  .55 

Prom  46  to  47  years  60 

Prom  47  to  48  years  65 

Prom  48  to  49  years  70 

Prom  49  to  50  years  75 


Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita,  fixed  at  each 
session  Supreme  or  Grand  Lodge. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $41,303.23. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  51  cents. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


123 


Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  12.98;  1892,  12  65; 
1893,  12.89  ;  1894,  11.6. 
Average  age  not  given. 

Number  of  assessments,  year  1891,  29  ;  1892,  29  ;  1893,  29  ;  1894,  29. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $11.60  ;  35  years, 
$13.05;  40  years,  $14.50.  In  1894,30  years,  $11.60  ;  35  years,  $13.05 ; 
40  years,  $14  50. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $957,000  ;  1894,  $1,089,123.80. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $82,159,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $88,480,000. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
75,155. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
80,763. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  1,842 ;  January 
1st,  1895,  1,918. 

KNIGHTS  AND  LADIES  OF  SECURITY. 

E.  G.  Miner,  President,  Topeka,  Kansas. 

J.  M.  Wallace,  Secretary,  Topeka,  Kansas ;  salary,  50  cents  each 
certificate  written. 

M.  B.  KiRKPATRiCK,  Treasurer,  Topeka,  Kansas. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  February  22d,  1892. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  July,  1892. 

Issue  certificates  for  $500,  $1,000,  $2,000,  $3,000,  at  50  cents  per 
$1,000. 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  of  $1.00 
each  member  ;  certificate  fee,  $1.00  ;  Medical  Director,  50  cents. 
Cost  of  management  1894,  $10,000. 
Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.65. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1892,  4  ;  1893,  4  ;  1894,  2.75. 
Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  37  years ;  January  1st,  1895,  37 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1892,  3  ;  1893,  5  ;  1894,  9. 
Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  $2.50;  1894,  $4.50. 
Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $2,871.88  ;  1894,  $21,687.90. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $1,822,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $10,695,500. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
1,264. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
6,044. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  56 ;  1895,  206. 
Has  a  copy-righted  Reserve  Fund  plan,  whereby  all  pay  the  same 
into  the  Reserve  Fund,  whether  they  die  the  first  or  the  fiftieth  year. 


124  The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 

There  is  a  clause  in  the  beneficiary  certificate  which  reads  as 
follows : 

"  And  it  is  herein  further  provided  and  agreed  by  and  between  the 
order  and  the  insured,  that,  for  the  purpose  of  creating-  and  main- 
taining a  reserve  fund,  on  the  death  of  the  party  insured  the  National 
Council  shall  retain  $50  of  each  thousand  of  said  beneficiary  certifi- 
cate, less  one  dollar  for  each  year  the  said  beneficiary  certificate  shall 
have  remained  in  force,  the  dollar  on  each  thousand  to  be  paid  to  the 
National  Council  the  same  as  quarterly  dues  of  twenty-five  cents  per 
quarter  per  $1,000." 

KNIGHTS  OF  HONOR. 

Marsden  Bellamy,  Supreme  Dictator,  Wilmington,  N.  C.  ;  sal- 
ary, 14,000. 

B.  P.  Nelson,  Supreme  Reporter,  St.  Louis,  Mo.  ;  salary,  $4,200. 
Joseph  W.  Branch,  Supreme  Treasurer,  St  Louis,  Mo.  ;  salary, 
$3,600. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  Jane  30th,  J873. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  September  5th,  1874. 

Issue  certificates  for  $500,  $1,000  and  $2,000  at  graded  rates,  pro  rata. 


Between  the  ages  of 

For  $1,000. 

Between  the  ag 

es  of 

For  $1,000. 

18  and  30  

$  40 

40  and  41  .  , 

 $  63 

30  and  31  

  42 

41  and  42 

  66 

31  and  32  

44 

32  and  33  

46 

43  and  44  

  72 

33  and  34  

48 

  75 

34  and  35  

50 

45  and  46 

  hO 

52 

46  and  47 

  85 

3H  and  37  

54 

47  and  48  ,  . 

  90 

56 

48  and  49 

  95 

38  and  39  

58 

49  and  50 

  1  00 

39  and  40   

60 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  certificate  fees  and  per 
capita  35  cents  per  annum. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $81,987  79 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  67  cents. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  14.7  ;  1892,  16.3  ;  1893, 
15.67;  ld94, 

Average  age  not  given. 

Number  of  assessments,  year  1891,  30;  1892,  32;  1893,  32;  1894,  32 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $13.44;  35  years 
$16.64  ;  40  years,  $20.16.  In  1894,  30  years,  13  34  ;.  35  years,  $16  64  ; 
40  years,  $20  16. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $4,017,486 ;  1894,  $3,845,116.65. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $256,257,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $225,422,500. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
123,354. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
121,085. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  2,575;  1895,  2,580. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


125 


KNIGHTS  OF  PYTHIAS. 

[Endowment  Bank.) 

J.  A.  HiNSEY,  President,  Chicag-o ;  salary,  $2,000. 
H.  B.  Stolte,  Secretary,  Chicag-o  ;  salary,  $3,000, 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  November,  1877. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  January  81st,  1878. 
Issue  certificates  from  $1,000  to  $8,000,  at  g-raded  rates,  pro  rata,  as 
follows,  on  $1,000  (payable  monthly)  : 


Age. 

Rate. 

Age. 

Rate. 

Age. 

Rate. 

Age. 

Rate. 

Age.  Rate. 

21  .. 

.$  .70 

27.. 

.80 

3.8 

$  .90 

39.  . 

.  .$1.10 

45. . . .11.35 

22... 

.  .70 

,  28.. 

..  .80 

34.  . 

.  .95 

40.  . 

..  1.10 

46....  1.4t 

23... 

.  .70 

29.  . 

. .  .80 

35.  . 

. .  .95 

41. . 

..  1.15 

47   ].4£ 

24.  . . 

.  .70 

30.  . 

. .  .80 

36  . 

.  1.00 

42.  . 

. .  1.20 

48  . . .  1.5C 

31. . 

. .  .85 

37  .  . 

.  1.00 

43.  . 

. .  I.k5 

49   1.5n 

26. . . 

.75 

32.  . 

. .  .90 

38.  . 

.  1.05 

44  .  . 

.  .  1.30 

50   1.6(: 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  payment  of  60  cents  per 
each  $1,000  carried  by  each  member,  in  monthly  installments  of  5 
cents  per  $1,000. 

Cost  of  management,  1894,  $57,391.37. 

Cost  of  management  per  member.  1894,  $1,65  +. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  14.40;  1892,  13.90  ;  1893, 
12.76;  1894,  12.06. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  41.7  years;  January  1st,  1895, 
41.26  years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  12;  1892,  12  and  1  extra ;  1893, 
12;  1894,  13. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1898,  30  years,  $9.60;  35  years, 
11.40;  40  years,  $13.20.  In  1894,  30  years,  $10.20;  35  years,  $12.00  ;  40 
years,  $13.80. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $802,900  ;  1894,  $809,560. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $70,759,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $76,270,000. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
32,922. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
36,371, 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges,  January  1st,  1894,  1,698  ;  January 
1st,  1895,  2,112. 

KNIGHTS  OF  ST.  .lOHN  AND  MALTA. 

James  W.  Streeton,  Supreme  President,  102  Grand  street,  New 
York  City  ;  salary,  $300. 

J.  L.  McElroy,  Supreme  Secretary,  515  East  119th  street.  Now 
York  City  ;  salary,  $900. 

T.  E.  Bo  WEN,  Supreme  Treasurer,  postoffice  l)ox  1474,  New  York 
City  ;  salary,  $100. 


126 


The  Woodmmi^s  Hand  Book. 


Commenced  business  as  an  order  March  13th,  1883. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  May  12th,  1883. 
Issue  certificates  for  $1,000  and  |2,000,  graded,  pro  rata,  as  follows, 
on  $1,000: 


Age.  Rate. 

18,  19,  20  1  .24 

21  and  22   .28 

23  and  24  32 

25  and  26  36 

27  and  2M  40 

29  and  30  44 


Age.  Rate. 

31  and  32  $  .48 

33  and  34  52 

35  and  36  56 

.37  and  38  60 

39  and  40  64 

41  and  42  68 


Age.  Rate. 

43  and  44  $  .72 

45  and  46  76 

47  and  48  80 

49  and  50  86 

51  and  52   1.10 

53  and  54   1.2G 


Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  of  40  cents, 
semi-annually 

Cost  of  management,  1894.  $3,809.31. 

Cost  of  management  per  member,  1894  84  cents. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  5.0;  1892,7.8  ;  1893, 
9;  1894,  7.5S. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  34.8  years;  Januai'y  1st,  1895,  35.75 
years. 

Number  of  assessments,  year  1891,  11  ;  1892,  14  ;  1893,  21  ;  1894,  15. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $9.24;  35  year?, 
$11.76;  40  years,  $13.44.  In  1894,  30  years,  $6.60*  35  years,  $8.40, 
40  years,  $9.60. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $41,746 ;  1894,  $32,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st.  1894,  $3,926,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $1,383,000. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
3,320. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
3,562  insured,  1,443  social. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges,  January  1st,  1894.  76;  January  1st, 
1895,  87. 

KNIGHTS  OF  THE  GOLDEN  EAGLE. 

Jacob  H.  Hull,  Supreme  Chief,  Baltimore,  Md. 

William  Culbertson,  Supreme  Master  of  Records,  Philadel- 
phia, Penn.;  salary,  $600. 

Timothy  McCarthy,  Supreme  Keeper  of  Exchequer,  Philadel- 
phia, Penn.;  salary,  $100. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  September  1st,  1891. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  January  1st,  1892. 

Issue  certificates  for  $1,000  at  uniform  rate  of  50  cents  per  assess- 
ment. 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  of  $1.00 
per  annum. 

Cost  of  management,  1^94,  $  »,631.3'/. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  not  reported. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book . 


127 


Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891, 1  ;  1892,  9.2;  1893,  13; 
1894,  13. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  41  years;  January  1st,  1895,  41.6 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  none  ;  1892,24;  1893,24;  1894,31. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $12.00;  35  years, 
$12.00;  40  years,  $12.00.  In  1894,  30  years,  $15.50;  35  years,  $15.50; 
40  years,  $15.50. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $49,000  ;  1894,  $44,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $3,490,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $3,093,000. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894,  3  490. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1  st,  1895,  3,093. 

Number  of  subordinate  castles  January  1st,  1891,  41  ;  1895,  829. 

The  membership  of  the  order  is  over  65,000.  It  is  optional  for 
members  of  the  order  to  join  the  Death  Benefit  Fund. 


L.  Y.  Johnson,  Supreme  Commander,  Meridian,  Miss.;  salary, 


T.  J.  Smith,  Supreme  Secretary,  Cincinnati,  Ohio  ;  salary,  $1,200. 
W.  C.  Streetor,  Supreme  Treasurer,  St.  Louis,  Mo.;  salary,  $600. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  August  IGth,  1879. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  July  1st,  1880. 

Issue  certificates  for  $500,  $1,0J0,  and  $2,000,  at  the  following  rates 
(average  cost  on  graded  plan  of  assessment) : 


Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  and  ten  per 
cent  from  returns  on  assessments. 
Cost  of  management  1894,  $3,543.89. 
Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.02. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  junior  10.7  rsenior 
42.5;  1892,  junior  10.8,  senior  48.6;  1893,  29.7  ;  1894,  10.7. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  42  years;  January  1st,  1895,  43 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  junior  28,  senior  53  ;  1892,  junior 
34  ;  senior,  60  ;  1893,  22  ;  1894,  18. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $13.64;  35  years, 
$13.64;  40  years,  $13.64.  In  1894,  30  years,  $9.20;  35  years,  $10.80;  40 
years,  $12.60. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $44,169.21  ;  1894,  $65,500.00. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $3,344,500. 


KNIGHTS  OF  THE  GOLDEN  RULE. 


$400. 


$  500 
1,000. 
2,000. 


$  .31 
.62 
1.24 


128 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $3,669,500? 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894^ 
3,300. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
3,625. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  83  ;  January  1st, 
1895,  87. 

KNIGHTS  OF  THE  MACCABEES. 

{Supreme  Tent  of  the  World.) 
D.  P.  Markey,  Supreme  Commander,  Port  Huron,  Mich.;  salary, 

$5,ono. 

N.  S.  BOYNTON,  Supreme  Record  Keeper,  Port  Huron,  Mich.;  sal- 
ary, $5,000. 

C.  D.  Thompson,  Supreme  Finance  Keeper,  Port  Huron,  Mich.; 
salary,  $1,000. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  September  1st,  1883. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  September  1st,  1883. 

Issue  certificates  for  $1,000,  $2,000,  and  $3,000,  at  the  following 
rates : 

RATE  OF  ASSESSMENT  —  NORTHERN  DISTRICT. 

Between  the  Ages  of  For  $1,000.  For  $2,000.  ForS>3,000. 

18  and  25  $  .40  $  .80  $1.20 

25  and  30  45  90   1.35 

30  and  35  50   l.Ou   1.50 

35  and  40  60   1.20   1.80 

40  and  45  75   1.50    2.25 

45  and  48  90   1.80   2.70 

48  and  51   1.00   2.00   3.00 

51  and  52   1.25   2.50 

52  and  53   1.50   3.00 

53  and  54   2.00 

54  and  55   2.50 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  certificate  and  member- 
ship fees,  and  such  per  capita  tax  of  the  assessments  as  may  be  set 
aside  from  year  to  year,  as  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  Supreme  Tent 
may  prescribe,  not  to  exceed  in  any  one  year  12  per  cent  of  the 
whole  amount  paid  into  the  Supreme  Tent. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $114,875.18. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.73. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  5.40  ;  1892,  6.30  ;  1893, 
6.84;  1894,  6.05. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  35  years;  January  1st,  1895,  35.66 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  12;  1892,  13;  1893,  13  ;  1894,  13. 
Cost  of  life  and  disability  per  $1,000  in  1893,    30  years,  $6.50;  35 


Rev.  F.  F.  Farmiloe,  Head  Chaplin,  M.  W.  A.,  Rockford,  111. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


129 


years,  $7.80 ;  40  years,  $9.75.  In  1894,  30  years,  $6.50  ;  35  years,  $7.80 ; 
40  years,  $9.75. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $502,933  ;  1894,  $674,794.81. 

Total  amount  of  life  and  disability  benefits  in  force  January  1st, 

1894,  $90,847,000. 

Total  amount  of  life  and  disability  benefits  in  force  January  1st, 

1895,  $115,366,000. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
56,469. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
76,620. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  1,230 ;  January 
1st,  1895,  1,757. 

KNIGHTS  OF  THE  MACCABEES. 

( Great  Camp  Michigan. ) 

N.  S.  BOYNTON,  Great  Commander,  Port  Huron,  Mich.  ;  salary, 
$1,000. 

Thomas  Watson,  Great  Record  Keeper,  Port  Huron,  Mich.  ;  sal- 
ary, $2,000. 

R.  J.  Whaley,  Great  Finance  Keeper,  Flint,  Mich.  ;  salary  $500. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  June  11th,  1881. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  October  21st,  1881. 
Issue  certificates  for  $1,000  and  $2,000  at  the  following  rates  on 
$1,000  : 

Over  18  and  under  25  years.  .$  .75  Over  40  and  under  45  years.  .$1.50 
Over  25  and  under  30  years. .  .85  Over  45  and  under  48  years. .  1.75 
Over  30  and  under  35  years  .  1.00  Over  48  and  under  51  years. .  2.00 
Over  35  and  under  40  years. .  1.25 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  annual  per  capita  of  $1.00, 
payable  semi-annually  in  advance,  charter  fees  for  new  tents,  and  cer- 
tificate fees. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $78,031.19. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.37. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  5.90;  1892,  5;  1893, 
5.40;  1894,  5.70. 

x\verage  age  January  1st,  1894,  34  years ;  January  1st,  1895,  35 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  5  ;  1892,  5  ;  1893,  5  ;  1894,  5. 

Cost  of  life  and  disability  benefits  per  1,000  in  1893,  30  years, 
$5.00  ;  35  years,  $6.25 ;  40  years,  $7.50.  In  1894,  30  years,  $5.00  ;  35  years, 
$6.25  ;  40  years,  $7.50. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $378,650  ;  1894,  $437,181.09. 

Total  amount  of  life  and  disability  benefits  in  force  January  1st, 
1894,  $77,040,000. 


130 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


Total  amount  of  life  and  disability  benefits  in  force  January  1st, 
1895,  $84,640,000. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing-  January  1st,  1894, 
54,088. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  189  ), 
60,949. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  852;  January  1st, 
1895,  901. 

LEGION  OF  THE  RED  CROSS. 

H.  P.  ACKLEY,  Supreme  Commander,  Camden,  N.  J. 
J.  B.  Treibler,  Jr.,  Supreme  Recorder,  Baltimore,  Md.  ;  salary, 
$800. 

J.  H.  Livingston,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Baltimore,  Md.  ;  salary, 
$200. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order,  September  19th,  1885. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  March,  1887. 

Issue  certificates  for  $1,000,  at  50  cents  per  assessment  (not  graded). 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  dues  of  $1.00  per  year. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $3,302.26. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  95  cents. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  11.10;  1892,  10.80; 
1893,  6.12;  1894,  9.89. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  36.87  years;  January  1st,  1895, 
37.44  years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  15;  1892,  22;  1893,  12;  1894,  23. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $6,00;  35  years, 
16.00;  40  years,  $6.00.  In  1894,  30  years,  $11.50;  35  years,  $11.50; 
40  years,  $11.50. 

Losses  paid  in  1893,  $14,000;  1894,  $35,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $2,863,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $3,536,0()0. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
2,863. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
3,542. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  39  ;  January  1st, 
1895,  51. 

MODERN  WOODMEN  OF  AMERICA. 

William  A.  Northcott,  Head  Consul,  Greenville,  111.;  salary, 
$2,000. 

Charles  W.  Hawes,  Head  Clerk,  Fulton,  III.;  salary,  $2,500. 
David  C.  Zink,  Head  Banker,  Grand  Island,  Neb.;  salary,  $600. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  January  5th,  1883. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  July  1st,  1884. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


131 


Issue  certificates  for  $500,  |1,000,  $2,000  and  $3,000,  graded  rates, 
pro  rata,  as  follows,  per  $1,000  : 


An  applicant  who  is  past  41  years  cannot  secure  a  certificate  for 
more  than  $2,000. 

Expense  of  mangement  provided  for  by  per  capita,  $1.00  per  an- 
num, payable  semi-annually  in  advance. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $69,464.17. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  66  cents. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  5.31 ;  1892,  5.15 ;  1893, 
5.11  ;  1894,  5.08. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  37.53  years  ;  January  1st,  1895, 
36.99  years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  11  ;  1892,  11 ;  1893,  11 ;  1894,  11. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $4.75;  35  years, 
$4.95  ;  40  years,  $5.12;  1894,  30  years,  $4.75  ;  35  years,  $4.95;  40  years, 
$5.12. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $906,200  ;  1894,  $1,104,500. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $184,133,500. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $236,713,500. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
88,223. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
114,945. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  2,121 ;  January 
1st,  1895,  2,650. 

Territory  confined  to  ten  of  the  northwestern  states,  and  excludes 
large  cities. 

Excludes  hazardous  occupations. 


William  H.  McCabe,  President,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. ;  salary,  $500. 
William  J.  Gorsuch,  Secretary,  Room  100  Times  Bldg.,  New 
York,  N.  Y. ;  salary,  $1,500. 

William  Nagle,  Treasurer,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.  ;  salary,  $500. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  January,  1883. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied   1883. 

Issue  certificates  for  $500  to  $3,000,  graded,  pro  rata,  as  follows  on 


$1,000 : 

Between  Ages  of 

Rate. 

Between  Ages  of 

Rate. 

Between  Ages  of 

Rate. 

18  and  30  

.$  .35 

46  and  47  ,  . 

.$  .75 

51  and  52 

$1.10 

30  and  35  .  ,  .  , 

,  .45 

47  and  48  .... 

.  .80 

52  and  53  , 

,  1.25 

35  and  40  ,  . 

.  .55 

48  and  49  

.  .85 

53  and  54 

.  1.40 

40  and  45  .  ,  .  . 

.65 

49  and  50  

.  .90 

54  and  55  ,  . 

.  1.60 

.  .70 

50  and  51 

,  1.00 

Age  at  Nearest  Birthday. 
From  18  to  28  years. 
From  29  to  33  years . 
From  34  to  37  years 
From  38  to  39  years . 


,$  .40 
,  .45 
.45 
.50 


Rate. 


Age  at  Nearest  Birthday.  Rate 

From  40  to  41  years  $  .50 

From  42  to  43  years  55 

From  44  to  45  years  55 


NATIONAL  PROVIDENT  UNION. 


132 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


Expense  of  manag-ement  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  of  $1.00 
per  annum,  paid  semi-annually. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $6,134.21. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.02. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891, 10.90 ;  1892,  12.50  ;  1893, 
13.60;  1894,  9.33. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  391  years  ;  1895,  39f  years. 

Number  of  assessments,  year  1891,  21 ;  1892,  23  ;  189:^,  25  ;  1894,  24, 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  29  years  $8.75 ;  30  years, 
$11.25;  35  years,  $13.75;  40  years,  |16.25.  In  1894,  29  years,  $8.40; 
30  years,  $10.80  ;  35  years,  $13.20 ;  40  years,  $15.60. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $170,000 ;  1894,  $150,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $12,375,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $11,631,000. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894,  6,254. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895,  5,900. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  87  ;  January  1st, 
1895,  89. 

The  slight  decrease  in  membership  has  been  a  weeding  out  process, 
as  is  shown  by  the  decrease  in  assessment  and  death  rate.  The 
National  Provident  Union  is  a  society  for  the  cultivation  and  dissem- 
ination of  patriotism,  and  for  the  education  of  its  citizens  in  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  government  of  the  United  States,  its  constitution,  and 
the  rights  and  duties  of  American  citizenship. 

Its  government  is  vested  in  a  National  Union,  States,  and  Coun- 
cils, with  legislative,  executive,  and  judicial  branches,  a  transcript 
as  nearly  as  can  be  consistent  with  economy  of  the  government  of  the 
United  States.  Its  chief  officers  are  elected  by  popular  vote.  The 
law-making  power  is  vested  in  a  congress  elected  by  the  citizens. 

NATIONAL  RESERVE  ASSOCIATION. 

P.  W.  Sears,  Supreme  President,  Kansas  City,  Mo.;  salary,  $1,800. 

J.  C.  Hennessey,  Supreme  Secretary-Treasurer,  Kansas  City, 
Mo.;  salary,  $1,800. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  May  8th,  1891. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied  for  death  loss,  April  1st.  1893. 

Issue  certificates  in  amounts  of  $500,  $1,000,  $1,500,  and  $2,000,  at 
the  following  rates,  pro  rata,  on  $1,000. 

Age.  Rate.  Age.  Rate.  Age.  Rate. 

16  and  17   $.32  35  and  36  $.45  48  $.72 

18   33  37   47  49   75 

19,  20  and  21  34  38   48  50  80 

22  and  23   35  39   50  51  85 

24   36  40   52  52  90 

25  and  26   37         41   54         53  95 

27   38  42   56  54   1.00 

28  and  29   39         43   58         55   1.10 

30   40  44   60  56   1.20 

31   41  45   63  57   1.30 

32  and  83   43         46   66         58   1.40 

34   44  47   69  59   1.50 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


133 


Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  the  levying-  of  three  gen- 
eral fund  assessments  annually. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $4,468.12. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1994,  $1.34. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  189J,  none ;  1892,  none  ;  1893, 
2.21  ;  1894,  2.1Q. 

Average  January  1st,  1894,  32  +  years;  January  1st,  1895,  36  + 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  none  ;  1892,  6  ;  1893, 11 ;  1894, 12. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $4.40;  35  years, 
$4.95;  40  years,  $5.72.  In  1894,  30  years,  $4.80;  35  years,  |5.40  ;  40 
years,  $6.24  (includes  expense,  assessments,  and  reserve). 

This  ''cost^>f  insurance  per  $1,000"  in  1893  and  1894  is  composed 
of  three  elemoits,  and  is  divided  as  follows  : 


-1893- 


Age  30. 
Age  35 . 
Age  40. 


Death 

Losses.  Reserve.  Expense.  Total. 
$2.40...$  .80... $1.20... $4.40 
-  2.70...  .90...  1.35...  4.95 
.  3.12...  1.04...  1.56...  5.72 


Death 


-1894- 


$2.70. 
3.04. 
3.51. 


Reserve.  Expense. 
.$  .90... 11.20.. 
.  1.01...  1.35.. 
.  1.17...  1.56.. 


Total. 
.$4.80 
.  5.40 
.  6.24 


Loss^.0  paid  in  year  1893,  $4,500  ;  in  1894,  $9,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $3,114,000. 
T'>tal  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $4,673,000. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
2,251. 

Total  membership  In  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895 
3,324. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  69;  January  1st, 
1395,  87. 


NATIONAL  UNION. 

F.  Fairman,  Senate  President,  Chicago,  111.;  salary,  $1,200. 

J.  Yv^.  Myers,  Senate  Secretary,  Toledo,  Ohio ;  salary,  $3,500. 

C.  O.  EVARTS,  Senate  Treasurer,  Cleveland,  Ohio ;  salary,  $2,500. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  May  14th,  1881. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  August  28th,  1882. 

Issue  certificates  in  amounts  of  $1,000  to  $5,000,  graded  rates  pro 


rata  on  $1,000  as  follows  : 

Age. 

Rate. 

Age. 

Rate. 

Age. 

Rate. 

Age. 

Rate. 

Age. 

Rate 

20... 

.$  .20 

30... 

.$  .30 

39.. 

.$  .39 

48.. 

.$  .56 

57. . . 

.$  .84 

21... 

.  .21 

31... 

.  .31 

40.. 

.  .40 

49.. 

.  .58 

58... 

.  .89 

22... 

.  .22 

32... 

.  .32 

41.. 

.  .42 

50.. 

.  .60 

59... 

.  .94 

23... 

.  .23 

33... 

.  .33 

42.. 

.  .44 

51.. 

..  .63 

60... 

.  1.00 

24... 

.24 

34... 

.34 

43.. 

.  .46 

52.. 

.  .66 

61... 

.  1.06 

25... 

.  .25 

35... 

.  .35 

44.. 

.  .48 

53. . 

..  .69 

62... 

.  1.13 

26... 

.  .26 

36... 

.  .36 

45.. 

.  .50 

54.. 

..  .72 

63... 

.  1.20 

27... 

.  .27 

37... 

.  .37 

46.. 

.  .52 

55.. 

.  .  .75 

64... 

.  1.30 

28... 

.  .28 

38... 

.  .38 

47.. 

.  .54 

56.. 

. .  .79 

G5... 

.  1.40 

29... 

.  .29 

134 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  of  ninety 
cents  per  annum. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $51,366.75. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.14. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  6.60  ;  1892,  6.90 ;  1893, 
7.80  ;  1894,  7.61. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  39.30  years ;  January  1st,  1895, 
39.87  years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  14 ;  1892,  15  ;  1893,  18 ;  1894,  18. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $5.40  ;  35  years, 
6.30;  40  years,  $7.20.  In  1894,  30  years,  $5.40;  35  years,  $6.30;  40 
years,  $7.20. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $1,006,000  ;  1894,  $1,154,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $135,011,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $136,726,000. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
43,559. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
44,707. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  655  ;  January  1st, 
1895,  686. 

Do  not  increase  rate  on  certain  occupations,  but  every  member's 
rate  increases  yearly  from  one  to  ten  cents,  according  to  age. 


NEW  ENGLAND  ORDER  PROTECTION. 

Henry  W.  Oakes,  Supreme  Warden,  Auburn,  Maine  ;  salary^ 
$1,000. 

D.  M.  Frye,  Supreme  Secretary,  Boston,  Mass.,  43  Milk  St.;  sal- 
ary, $1,500. 

John  P.  Sanborn,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Newport  R.  I.  ;  salary, 
$1,000. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  November  12th,  1887. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied.  May  1st,  1888. 
Issue  certificates  for  $1,000,  $2,000,  and  $3,000. 

Between  the  ages  of       1st  Rate,  $1,000.  Between  the  ages  of       1st  Rate,  $1,000. 

18  and  25  $  .30         45  and  46  $  .55 

25  and  30  35         46  and  47  60 

30  and  35  40         47  and  48  65 

35  and  40  45         48  and  49    70 

40  and  45  50         49  and  50  75 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $24,289.30. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.65. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  6.49  ;  1892,  6.19  ;  1893, 
5.88;  1894,  7.02. 

Average  age  not  given. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


135 


Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  13 ;  1892,  12 ;  1893,  13 ;  1894,  15. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $4.55;  35  years, 
$5.20;  40  years,  $5.85.  In  1894,  30  years,  $5.25;  35  years,  $6.00; 
40  years,  $6.75. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $152,000  ;  1894,  $192,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $25,808,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $29,811,000. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
13,652. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
15,768. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  211 ;  January  1st, 
1895,  231. 


NORTHERN  MUTUAL  RELIEF  ASSOCIATION. 

George  R.  Kelso,  President,  Boston,  Mass. 
Walter  Wright,  Secretary,  Boston,  Mass. ;  salary,  $600. 
Frank  E.  Dimick,  Treasurer,  Boston,  Mass. ;  salary,  $200. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  September  19th,  1883. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  January  18th,  1884. 
Issue  certificates  for  $500,  $1,000,  $1,500,  and  $2,000  at  the  following 
rate  on  $1,000,  remaining  same  through  life. 


Age. 

Rate. 

Age, 

Rate. 

Age. 

Rate. 

Age. 

Rate. 

16  to  25 . .  . 

. .  .$  .50 

33... 

.  ..$  .59 

41  ,  ,  . 

.,$  .72 

49  . 

,  .$  .91 

26 

, ..  .51 

34  ., 

...  .60 

42 

. .  .74 

50  .  ,  . 

,  .94 

27  ,., 

,  , .  .52 

35,.. 

.  .62 

43  , 

.  .  .76 

51 

. .  .98 

28  ., 

. . .  .53 

36  .  . 

...  .63 

44... 

..  .78 

52, 

.  1.01 

29..., 

.54 

37.  .  . 

,   .  .64 

45 

,  .  .81 

53 

.  1.04 

30  . 

. . .  .56 

38  ,  , 

...  .66 

46 

. .  .83 

54 

..  1.09 

31 

.  .  .  .57 

39  .. 

...  .68 

47 ... . 

..  .85 

55  ... 

.  1.13 

32  .,, 

, . .  .58 

40 

.  .70 

48 

..  .88 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  and  certifi- 
cate fees. 

Cost  of  management  1893,  $2,282.68. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  not  given. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891, 13  ;  1892, 14  ;  1893,  20. 
Average  age  not  given. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  16  ;  1892,  19 ;  1893,  22. 
Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $12.32;  35  years, 
$13.64  ;  40  years,  $15.40. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $42,372.50. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $2,531,457.50. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
1,573. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  32. 


136 


The  Woodman^s  Hand  Booh. 


ORDER  MUTUAL  PROTECTION. 

William  F.  Denbach,  Supreme  President,  St.  Louis,  Mo. ;  salary, 
150. 

G.  Del  Necchio,  Supreme  Secretary,  Chicago,  111.  ;  salary,  $1,500. 
G.  F.  SCHMATSTIEG,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Chicago,  111. ;  salary, 
$300. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  January,  1878. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  1879. 

Issue  certificates  for  $500,  $1,000,  and  $2,000,  at  graded  rates  on 
$1,000  as  follows : 


Between  Ages  of  Rate. 

18  and  25  $  .  35 

25  and  30  35 

30  and  35  40 

Between  Ages  of  $2,000. 

18  and  25  |  .65 

25  and  30  70 

30  and  35  75 


Between  Ages  of  Rate. 

35  and  40  $  .45 

40  and  45  50 

Between  Ages  of  $2,000. 

35  and  40  $  .80 

40  and  45  90 


Between  Ages  of  Rate. 

45  and  48  $  .60 

48  and  50  70 

Between  Ages  of  $2,000. 

45  and  48   $1.00 

48  and  50   1.20 


Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  of  $1.20  per 
annum. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $6,101.85. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.71. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,10;  1892,  8;  1893, 
10;  1894,  9.552. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  39  years  ;  January  1st,  1895,  40 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  19 ;  1892,  24 ;  1893,  25 ;  1894,  25. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $10 ;  35  years, 
$11.25;  40  years,  $12.50.  In  1894,  30  years,  $10  ;  35  years,  $11.25;  40 
years,  $12.50. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $56,000  ;  1894,  $55,982.25. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $5,709,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $5,789,000. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
3,442. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
3,664. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  70  ;  January  1st, 
1895,  67. 

ORDER  OF  CHOSEN  FRIENDS. 

H.  H.  Morse,  Supreme  Councilor,  New  York,  N,  Y.;  salary,  $3,000. 
T.  B.  Linn,  Supreme  Recorder,  Indianapolis,  Ind.;  salary,  $2,500. 
W.  J.  Newton,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Washington,  D.  C;  salary, 
$2,000. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  May  28th,  1879. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  January  29th,  1880. 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


137 


Issue  certificates  for  $500,  $1,000,  $2,000,  and  $3,000,  at  the  follow- 
ing rates  on  $1,000  : 

At  the  Ages  of                   Rate.  At  the  Ages  of  Rate. 

18  and  25  $  .  70  41  and  45  $1 .20 

26  and  30  80  46  and  50   1.50 

31  and  35  90  51  and  54   2.00 

36  and  40   1.00 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  an  assessment  for  that 
purpose. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $56,681. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.50. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  12.54  ;  1892,  13.59 ; 
1893,  13.95  ;  1894,  12.75. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  35.14  years ;  January  1st,  1895, 
34.81  years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  13  ;  1892,  14 ;  1893,  14 ;  1894,  15. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $11.20;  35  years, 
$12.60;  40  years,  $14.00.  In  1894,  30  years,  $12.00;  35  years,  $13.50; 
40  years,  $15.00. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $934,480;  1894,  $948,150. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $53,103,000. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $57,005,000. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
35,892. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
37,779. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  710  ;  January  1st, 
1895,  738. 

ORDER  OF  GOLDEN  CHAIN. 

O.  B.  Craig,  Supreme  Commander,  Baltimore,  Md.  ;  salary,  $1,800. 
A.  Stanley  Weir,  Supreme  Secretary,  Baltimore,  Md. ;  salary, 
$1,800. 

W.  H.  Sadler,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Baltimore,  Md.  ;  salary  $750 
and  $5.00  per  $1,000  after  the  first  $100,000. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  December  22d,  1881. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied  March  19th,  1883. 

Issue  certificates  for  $1,000,  $2,000,  and  $3,000,  at  the  following 
rates  per  $1,000  : 

Between  Ages  of      Rate.        Between  Ages  of     Rate.        Between  Ages  of  Rate. 

21  and  22  $  .32        31  and  32  $  .47        41  and  42  $  .72 

22  and  23  33        32  and  33  49        42  and  43  76 

23  and  24  34        33  and  34  51        43  and  44  80 

24  and  25    35        34  and  35  53        44  and  45  85 

25  and  26  36        35  and  36  55        45  and  46  90 

26  and  27  37        36  and  37  57        46  and  47  95 

27  and  28  39        37  and  38  59        47  and  48   1.00 

28  and  29  41        38  and  39  61        48  and  49   1.06 

29  and  30  43        39  and  40  64        49  and  50   1.12 

30  and  31  45        40  and  41  68        50  and  51   1.18 


138 


The  Woodman'' s  Hand-Booh. 


Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  and  one 
expense  assessment  per  year. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $21,503. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $2.46. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  6.33  ;  1892,  9.49  ;  1893, 
7.8 ;  1894,  8. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  34-f  years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  15;  1892,  19;  1893,  15;  1894,  17. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $6.75;  35  years, 
$8.25;  40  years,  $10.20.  In  1894,  30  years,  $7.65;  35  years,  $9.35;  40 
years,  $11.56. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $176,961 ;  1894,  $192,405.50. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $20,617,500. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $22,278,500. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894,  8,304. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895,  9,142. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  128 ;  January  1st, 
1895,  149. 

Pay  death  benefits  from  $1,000  to  $3,000;  sick  benefits  from  $5  to 
$15  per  week  ;  total  and  permanent  disabled  members,  $500  to  $1,500. 

ORDER  OF  GOLDEN  CROSS. 

F.  I.  Day,  Supreme  Commander,  Lewiston,  Maine  ;  salary,  $1,200. 
W.  R.  Cooper  Supreme  Keeper  of  Records,  Knoxville,  Tenn.; 
salary,  $1,800. 

J.  D.  Swain,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Nashua,  N.  H.;  salary,  $1,700. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  July  4th,  1876. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  1877. 

Issue  certificates  for  $1,000  and  $2,000,  graded  on  $1,000  as  follows  : 


Age. 

$1,000 

Age. 

$1,000. 

Age. 

.m,ooo. 

36  

. .  .$  .63 

46  

...$  .83 

26  .... 

,  .51 

37  

.  ,  .64 

47 

27  .... 

.52 

38  .... 

 66 

48 

 88 

28  .... 

.53 

39  .... 

 68 

49 

 91 

29  

.54 

40 

...  .70 

50 

 94 

30  

.56 

41  ... 

.  ,  .72 

51 

 98 

31  .... 

.57 

42  .... 

.  .  .74 

52.  ... 

,  ..  1.01 

32  .... 

.58 

43  

 76 

53 

...  1.04 

33  .... 

.59 

44 

 78 

54 

, .  ,  1.09 

34  

.60 

45    ,  ,  , 

 81 

55  , 

. ..  1.13 

35  .... 

.62 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  of  eighty  cents 
per  annum  and  expense  assessment. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $23,903.18. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  96  cents. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891, 11.10 ;  1892, 11.50 ;  1893, 
11.87. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


139 


Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  14  junior,  36  senior ;  1892,  14 
junior,  38  senior ;  1893,  15  junior,  20  senior  ;  1894,  1  expense,  16  bene- 
fit, junior. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  junior  $7.50, 
senior  $10  ;  35  years,  junior  $9.30,  senior  $12.40  ;  40  years,  junior 
$10.50,  senior  $14.  In  1894,  30  years,  $8.96  ;  35  years,  $9.92  ;  40  years, 
$11.20. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $343,263  ;  1894,  $411,504.78. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $31,979,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $34,880,000. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing-  January  1st,  1894, 
22,107. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
24,762. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  407  ;  January  1st, 
1895,  455. 

Senior  class  recently  abolished. 

ORDER  OF  PILGRIM  FATHERS. 

John  L.  Bates,  Supreme  Governor,  Boston,  Mass.  ;  salary,  $1,200. 
James  E.  Shepard,  Supreme  Secretary,  Lawrence,  Mass.  ;  salary, 
$2,500. 

A.  V.  Bugbee,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Lawrence,  Mass.  ;  salary, 
$1,200. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  March  15th,  1879. 
Date  of  first  assessment,  levied,  March  19th,  1880. 
Issue  certificates  for  $1,000  and  $2,000  ;  graded  rates  on  $1,000  are 
as  follows : 


Age. 

Rate. 

Age. 

Rate. 

Age. 

Rate. 

Age. 

Rate. 

Age.  Rate. 

27,  .  . 

,  $1.05 

33,  .  . 

$1.20 

39, 

,  ,  $1.35 

45 

.,$1.60 

50.  ,,$1.85 

28, ,  . 

,  1.05 

34  , 

,  1.20 

40 

...  1.35 

46 

.  1.65 

51   1.90 

29.  . 

1.10 

35,  .  . 

1.25 

41 

.  ..  1.40 

47 

,  1.70 

52   2.00 

30.  , . 

,  i.io 

36... 

..  1.25 

42 

. ..  1.45 

48... 

..  1.75 

53   2.10 

31,  . 

,  .  1.15 

37 

..  1.30 

43 

.  ..  1.50 

49 

.  1.80 

54  ,  ,  .,  2.20 

32  , 

..  1.15 

38 

.  1.30 

44 

.  .,  1.55 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  of  75  cents 
per  annum. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $15,306. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  86  cents. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  8.4;  1892,  8.6;  1893, 
9 ;  1894,  8.4. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  41  years ;  January  1st,  1895,  41x^2 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  12 ;  1892,  14 ;  1893, 14 ;  1894,  14. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $7.70;  35  years, 
$8.75;  40  years,  $9.45.  In  1894,  30  years,  $7.70;  35  years,  $8.75;  40 
years,  $9.45. 


140 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $262,000  ;  1894,  $276,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $28,787,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $30,725,000. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing-  January  1st,  1894, 
16,948. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
18,338. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  151 ;  January 
1st,  1895,  161. 

ORDER  OF  SELECT  FRIENDS. 

J.  A.  Wells,  Supreme  Protector,  Erie,.Kas.;  salary,  25 cents  per 
new  member. 

Dr.  W.  I.  Linn,  Supreme  Recorder,  Ft.  Scott,  Kas.;  salary,  $1,200. 

A.  H.  Sears,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Ft.  Scott,  Kas.;  salary,  $300. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  June  5th,  1888. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  September  1st,  1890. 

Issue  certificates  for  $1,000,  $2,000  and  $3,000,  as  follows  on  $1,000  : 


Between  ages  of  Rate. 

18  and  24  $  .35 

24  and  30  40 


Between  ages  of  Rate. 

30  and  36  $  .45 

36  and  42  50 


Between  ages  of  Rate. 

42  and  46  $  .60 

46  and  50  75 


Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  certificate  fees,  sale  of 
supplies,  and  semi-annual  per  capita. 
Cost  of  management  1894,  $5,954.46. 
Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.42. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  8.38  ;  1892,  3.80 ; 
1893,  6.94;  1894,  7. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  39.8  years;  January  1st,  1895 
38.28  years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  7  ;  1892,  10  ;  1893,  13 ;  1894,  13. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $5.20  ;  35  years,  $5.85; 
40  years,  $6.50.  In  1894,  30  years,  $5.20;  35  years,  $5.85;  40  years, 
$6.50. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $47,888 ;  1894,  $54,098.30. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $6,891,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $7,791,000. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
3,604. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
4,190  beneficiary  ;  47  social. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  94 ;  January 
1st,  1895,  100. 

Admit  men  and  women  on  same  terms  and  conditions.  Pay  one- 
fourth  the  amount  of  certificate  in  case  of  loss  of  one  hand  or  foot, 
and  one-half  in  case  of  total  and  permanent  disability  caused  by  acci- 
dent. 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh  141 


ORDER  SHIELD  OF  HONOR. 

B.  D.  WOOLMAN,  Supreme  Master,  Philadelphia,  Penn. 

W.  T.  Henry,  Supreme  Secretary,  Baltimore,  Md.;  salary,  $1,500. 

J.  W.  Meeks,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Baltimore,  Md.;  salary,  $600. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  November  1st,  1885. 
-    Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  November  1st,  1885. 

Issue  certificates  for  $1,000  at  uniform  rate  of  25  cents  per  an  as- 
sessment. 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  centum  tax  levied 
upon  Grand  and  subordinate  lodges,  and  from  revenue  derived  from 
institution  and  benefit  certificates. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $6,515.39. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  63  cents. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  8;  1892,  7.25;  1893, 
8.5;  1894,  9i. 

Average  age  not  given. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  32  ;  1892,  32  ;  1893,  40 ;  1894,  47. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $10  ;  35  years,  $10  ; 
40  years,  $10.  In  1894,  30  years,  $11.75;  35  years,  $11.75;  40  years, 
$11.75. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $85,000  ;  1894,  $104,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $10,230,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $10,401,000. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
10,230. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 10,401. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  107 ;  1895,  108. 

The  Shield  of  Honor  was  instituted  May  11th,  1875,  but  the 
Supreme  Lodge  assumed  control  of  the  death  benefits  on  November 
1st,  1885. 

PROTECTED  HOME  CIRCLE. 

p.  D.  Stratton,  President,  Sharon,  Penn.  ;  salary,  $2,000. 
J.  W.  Mason,  Secretary,  Sharon,  Penn.  ;  salary,  $1,500. 
Alexander  McDowell,  Treasurer,  Sharon,  Penn.  ;  salary,  $500. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  August  7th,  1886. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  November  1st,  1886. 
Issue  certificates  for  amounts  from  $500  to  $3,000,  graded,  pro  rata, 
as  follows  on  $1,000: 


Age. 

$1,000. 

Age. 

$1,000. 

Age. 

$1,000. 

Age. 

$1,000. 

15  to  25.. 

.  .$  .50 

33  ,  .  . 

..$  .66 

41,  .  . 

.  .$  .84 

49 

.  .$1.16 

26. . 

..  .52 

34.  .  . 

.  .  .68 

42 

.  .  .88 

50  ,  , 

, .  1.20 

27.. 

. .  .54 

35  ,  , 

.  .70 

43 

.  .  .92 

51  ,  . 

,.  1.28 

28.  . 

. .  .56 

36  .. 

..  .72 

44 

.  .  .96 

52  .  , 

..  1.36 

29.. 

. .  .58 

37  ,  , 

..  .74 

45 

.  1.00 

53  .  . 

..  1.44 

30.. 

..  .60 

38  . 

,  .  .76 

46... 

..  1.04 

54,  .  . 

..  1.52 

31.. 

.  .  .62 

39  .. 

.  .  .78 

47 

,  1.08 

55 

..  1.60 

32  . 

. .  .64 

40.  . 

.  .80 

48,  .  , 

,  ,  1.12 

56.  .  , 

..  1.76 

142 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  of  $1  per 
annum. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $21,974.67. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $2.08. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  5.6;  1892,  5.4;  1893, 
7 ;  1894,  5. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  37  years;  January  1st,  1895, 
37i  years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  12;  1892,  12;  1893,  12;  1894,  12. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  |l,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $7.20;  35  years, 
8.40;  40  years,  $9.60.  In  1894,  30  years,  $7.20;  35  years,  $8.40;  40 
years,  |9.60. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $77,500 ;  1894,  $67,500. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $10,785,500. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $14,523,500. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
8,856. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
12,201. 

Number  of  subordinate  circles,  January  1st,  1894,  135  ;  January 
1st,  1895,  188. 

KOYAL  ARCANUM. 

Chill  W.  Hazzard,  Supreme  Regent,  Monongahela,  Penn.;  sal- 
ary, $3,500. 

W.  O.  ROBSON,  Supreme  Secretary,  Boston,  Mass.;  salary,  $5,000. 
E.  A.  Skinner,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Westfield,  N.  Y.;  salary, 
$3,000. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  June  23d,  1877. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  February  2d,  1878. 
Issue  certificates  for  $1,500  and  $3,000  at  the  following  rates  on 
$3,000 : 


Age. 

Rate. 

21.. 

..$1.00 

22.. 

.  .  1.04 

23.. 

..  1.08 

24.. 

. .  1.12 

25.. 

..  1.16 

26.. 

. .  1.20 

27.. 

..  1.24 

Age.  Rate. 

28  $1.28 

29....  1.32 
30....  1.38 
31....  1.44 
32....  1.50 
33....  1.56 
34....  1.62 


Age.  Rate. 
35.  . .  .$1.68 
36....  1.74 
37....  1.80 
.38....  1.86 
39....  1.96 
40....  2.06 
41....  2.16 


Age.  Rate. 
42.... $2. 26 
43....  2.36 
44....  2.46 
45....  2.58 
46....  2.70 
47....  2.82 
48....  2.96 


Age.  Rate. 
49.... $3.10 
50....  3.26 
51....  3.42 
52....  3.60 
53....  3.80 
54....  4.00 


Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  of  30  cents 
per  year  from  members  under  Grand  Council ;  $1.00  per  year  from 
members  under  Supreme  Council. 

Cost  of  management  1894.  $89,395.70. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  58  cents. 

Dea  ths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  9.02 ;  1892,  8.80  ;  1893, 
9.11 ;  1894,  8.74. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


143 


Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  39,99  years;  January  1st,  1895, 
40.229  years. 

Number  of  assessments,  year  1891,  15 ;  1892,  15 ;  1893,  15  ;  1894, 16. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $6.90 ;  35  years, 
$8.40;  40  years,  $10.30.  In  1894,  30  years,  $7.36;  35  years,  $8.96; 
40  years,  $10.99. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $3,770,750  ;  1894,  $3,959,599.98. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $432,748,500. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $46;i, 063,500. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
148,224. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
159,307. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  1,543;  January 
1st,  1895,  1,588. 

Sick  benefit  provision,  by  which  a  totally  disabled  member  is 
protected  by  his  Council  and  kept  in  good  standing. 

A  good  building  and  vault  for  the  preservation  of  its  records. 
No  unnecessary  expense  for  reserve  fund. 

ROYAL  LEAGUE. 

R.  S.  ILES,  Supreme  Archon,  Chicago,  111.  ;  salary,  $600. 

C.  A.  Warren,  Supreme  Scribe,  Chicago,  111.  ;  salary  $3,000. 

Holmes  Hoge,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Chicago,  111.  ;  salary,  $600. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  November  11th,  1883. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  September  1st,  1884. 

Issue  certificates  for  $2,000  and  $4,000,  graded,  on  $2,000,  as  follows  : 


Between  Ages  of 

Rate. 

Between  Ages  of 

Rate. 

Between  Ages  of 

Rate. 

21  and  22  

$  .67 

30  and  31  

.$  .93 

38  and  39 

,$1.25 

22  and  23 

.  .69 

31  and  32  

.  .96 

39  and  40 

.  1.31 

23  and  24  ,  .  , 

.  .72 

32  and  33  

.  1.00 

40  and  41 

.  1.37 

24  and  25  

,  .75 

33  and  31 

.  ].04 

41  and  42 

.  1  44 

25  and  26  ,  .  . , 

.  .78 

34  and  35  ,  , 

1.08 

42  and  43 

.  1.51 

26  and  27  

.81 

35  and  36  .  ,  . 

1.12 

43  and  44 

,  1.58 

27  and  28 

.84 

36  and  37  ,  , 

,  1.16 

44  and  45  

.  1.65 

28  and  29  

.  .87 

37  and  38,  .  ,  . 

.  1.20 

45  and  46  

,  1.72 

29  and  30  ,  ,  . 

.  .90 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  of  80  cents 
per  annum. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $5,270.80. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  48  cents. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  4  ;  1892,  5  ;  1893,  5.80  ; 
1894,  4.5. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  34  +  years  ;  January  1st,  1895, 
34  +  years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  10 ;  1892,  10 :  1893,  11  ;  1894,  9. 
Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $5.11  ;  35  years. 


144 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh, 


$6.16  ;  40  years,  $7.53 ;  1894,  30  years,  $4.19  ;  35  years,  $5.04 ;  40  years, 
$6.17. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $174,500 ;  1894,  $173,750. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $33,586,000. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $39,798,000. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing-  January  1st,  1894, 
9,745. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
11,610. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  104;  January 
1st,  1895,  113. 

Losses  include  $1,850  paid  for  total  disability  claims. 


ROYAL  SOCIETY  OF  GOOD  FELLOWS. 

W.  R.  Spooner,  Premier,  New  York  City  ;  salary,  $3,600. 
O.  L.  F.  Luther,  Supreme  Secretary,  Boston,  Mass. ;  salary,  $3,000. 
James  G.  Whitehouse,  Supreme  Treasurer,  Providence,  R.  I.; 
salary,  $2,000. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  February  23d,  1882. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  June  1st,  1886. 

Issue  certificates  for  $500,  $1,000,  $2,000,  and  $3,000,  as  follows  : 

Between  the  ages  of        Rate  per  $1,000.  Between  the  ages  of        Rate  per  $1,000, 

18and35  $.20         49  and  50  $.38 

35  and  40  23         50  and  51  40 

40  and  45  25         51  and  52  43 

45  and  46  28         52  and  53  45 

46  and  47  30         53  and  54  50 

47  and  48  33         54  and  55  58 

48  and  49  35         55  and  56  65 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  per  capita  tax  of  15 
cents  per  month  on  each  beneficial  member. 
Cost  of  management,  1894,  $35,056,56. 
Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $2.72. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  11.7;  1892,  12.5; 
1893,  11.6;  1894,  11.3. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,42  years;  January  1st,  1895,40.82 
years. 

Number  of  assessments  year  1891,  45;  1892,  50;  1893,  50;  1894,  53. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $10;  35  years, 
$11.50;  40  years,  $12.50.  In  1894,  30  years,  $10.60  ;  35  years,  $12.19  ; 
40  years,  $13.25. 

Losses  paid  in  1893,  $287,449 ;  1894,  $323,859.78. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $24,806,500. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $27,210,500* 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
10,676. 


James  A.  Lombard,  Grand  Rapids,  Michigan, 
Member  Committee  on  Mileage  and  Per  Diem. 


\ 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


145 


Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
12,870. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  219 ;  January  1st, 
1895,  228. 

KOYAL  TEMPLARS  OF  TEMPERANCE. 

L.  R.  Sanborn,  Supreme  President,  Buffalo,  N.  Y.  ;  salary,  $1,000. 

E.  B.  Rew,  Supreme  Secretary,  Buffalo,  N.  Y.  ;  salary,  $1,800. 

Merchant's  Bank,  Supreme  Treasury,  Buffalo,  N.  Y. 

Commenced  business  as  an  order  February  16th,  1870. 

Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  March  1st,  1878. 

Issue  certificates  for  $125  to  $2,000,  graded,  as  follows  : 


Benefit 
$125. 

Class  A,  from  16  to  25  %  .07 

Class  B,  from  25  to  30  07 

Class  C,  from  30  to  35   .08 

Class  D,  from  35  to  40  09 

Class  E,  from  40  to  45  10 

Class  F,  from  45  to  50  11 


Benefit 

Benefit 

Benefit 

Benefit 

$250. 

$500. 

$1,000. 

$2,000. 

$  .13 

$  .25 

$  .50 

$1.00 

.14 

.28 

.55 

1.10 

.15 

.30 

.60 

1.20 

.17 

.34 

.67 

1.35 

.19 

.38 

.75 

1.50 

.22 

.43 

.85 

1.70 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  semi-annual  general  fund 
assessments  of  30  cents  per  $1,000. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $15,938.93. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.29. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  14.5 ;  1892,  15 ;  1893, 
16.09  ;  1894,  15.70. 

Average  age  January  1st,  1894,  47i  years  ;  January  1st,  1895,  47.50 
years. 

Number  of  assessments,  year  1891,  23  ;  1892,  25 ;  1893,  26 ;  1894,  26. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $15.60  ;  35  years, 
$17.42;  40  years,  $19.50.  In  1894,30  years,  $14.40 ;  35  years,  $16.10; 
40  years,  $18.27. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $314,928  ;  1894,  $317,636.25. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $16,729,400. 

Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $16,763,400. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
12,243. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
12,975. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  497;  January 
1st,  1895,  510. 

WOODMEN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

[Sovereign  Camp  Jurisdiction.) 

J.  C.  Root,  Sovereign  Consul  Commander,  Omaha,  Neb.;  salary, 
$3,000. 

John  T.  Yates,  Sovereign  Clerk,  Omaha,  Neb.;  salary,  $1,500. 


146 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


F.  F.  ROOSE,  Sovereign  Banker,  Omaha,  Neb.;  salary,  $300. 
Commenced  business  as  an  order  January  1st,  1891. 
Date  of  first  assessment  levied,  September  1st,  1891. 
Issue  certificates  for  $500,  $1,000,  $1,500,  $2,000,  $2,500,  and  $3,000 
(also  monument,  $100),  at  the  following-  rates  for  $1,000  and  monument : 


Age. 

Rate. 

Age. 

Rate. 

Age. 

Rate. 

16  to  21 

.  .  .  .$  .35 

38  to  40  .  .  . 

,  .  , ,$  .60 

48  .  .  . 

.  .  ,  .$1.00 

22  to  25.... 

. .  .  .35 

41  to  43  .  .  . 

 65 

49  .  .  . 

.  ...  1.10 

26  to  29 

 40 

44  to  45  ,  , 

 75 

50. . . . 

1.15 

30  to  33 

,  .45 

46 

 80 

51    ,  , 

,  1.30 

34  to  37  ,  ,  . 

 50 

47. . . . 

 90 

52,  .  . 

. ...  1.50 

Expense  of  management  provided  for  by  percentage  of  assess- 
ments. 

Cost  of  management  1894,  $34,635.97. 

Cost  of  management  per  member  1894,  $1.21i. 

Deaths  per  1,000  beneficial  members  in  1891,  3.30  ;  1892,  4.30 ;  1893, 
5.80;  1894,  4.98. 

Average  age,  January  1st,  1894,  38.21  years ;  January  1st,  1895, 
36.87  years. 

Number  of  assessments,  year  1891,  7;  1892,  9;  1893,  14;  1894,  13. 

Cost  of  insurance  per  $1,000  in  1893,  30  years,  $6.30  ;  35  years,  $7  ; 
40  years,  $8.40.  In  1894,30  years,  $5.85  ;  35  years,  $6.50;  40  years, 
$7.80. 

Losses  paid  in  year  1893,  $219,200  ;  1894,  $215,400. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1894,  $30,780,200. 
Total  amount  of  insurance  in  force  January  1st,  1895,  $41,612,200. 
Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1894, 
14,057. 

Total  membership  in  absolute  good  standing  January  1st,  1895, 
20,272. 

Number  of  subordinate  lodges  January  1st,  1894,  658 ;  January 
1st,  1895,  739. 

Average  age  at  death,  1894,  42.88  years. 

Above  does  not  include  Pacific  jurisdiction  and  Canadian  jurisdic- 
tion Woodmen  of  the  World. 


The  Woodmwn's  Hand-Book. 


147 


'168Tui000'l 

d9d  /i}l2'0fM}J\[ 


'1681  ui 
PW(£  SdSSO'J 


■Sdx  OS 


'mi  ui. 

slUdimsdssv 


i  00  ifi  i>  i-<  oi  CO  to  ic  (M    fo  o  05iniM05i>t^ 


o6oic<i 


Tf<    t-  in  fO  i>  o» 

t^OJCiOinoO-rtii-liCrti 


o     o  o  o  — 

.-H  O  O  O  O  CC'  i.-^ 

ic  ao_iO  lO  o 

(Mi-HrH  rHOSIM 


rHOOOOCOOOOOOO 
OOcOOOOtHOOOOOO 
^ursOOiOi-HOiOOO  O^O 

■  CO  O  CO  ■n' <C  ^  CO  O      lO  lO  05 


OXiOOCTsOOOCJiOiOCOO 

Tj<_ai_T-H^io^o  o  o    uo^i^  x_«5_-^ 
o  CO  T-H        yj"  r-T  oT  CO  eo  i>r  icT 
i-i    cn        i-H  <N  a5,-icococ<i 


iOOOOOcDttCNOXOOOc 


lOX  C0l^-^r-(TjH(Mi005Ot>-*TtliO05 


^-^coailOc^o^^l0^o^o^>OlOr-^(^^^01— itOrHOicnoocooot^- 


i-^oicoooorruoirsOiMLOiOiootc-^aiOO 


XOCO  i-nr5rt<C5T— It 


1  CO  X  05      CO  ■ 


llOOOrH'^iOCOtoySCOCit-ICOOiiOi— iXXXiO(N«C"0 


0>C<10t-TJ<000! 


lrJ<0«5iOOCOlCC73COi 


•MCOt 


«0  O  I>  0«  C<1  00  X      (N  a»  l>  O  (N  iC  C 


CO  iH  i-(  r 


(M  I-H  i-lT 


UVM  fo  JSOQ 


cja3co«5co«Oi-iii50cot-in'*ia»iMi--incoTi<<N-*ic 
co«0!OTtii-i(Mi0500i^co«5xr-o«oa550coOi-H-^ 


iC^C0OXXX<NC5t-l 


lT-(  <Nl-(r-l 


'168T  ui 
Jo  dsuddx3[ 


3C0OC0iOC0OX0C05l^i-H£>C505«Ot^iM.-HO 

^^^oo5coc^Ol>I-lI-lcococox^^<^^^-l^-l(NI:^ 


'-N  -rr  O  C5 

X  O  O  CO  CO  O  X 
^^CO__T5H^  -V  >-l  CO  <M 
'co'cts  tJ^CO"  i-HTir 


w  tjj  w  t-*  ^  !>. 

-*COO«Ol^XlOCriOi 

CO^rHCOTfiOSO-^lUtiOOOOlO 
OOXOlOT-lOI^C5l>in!COCO 
lO^rH '-O  O  05  iC  CO  05  CO  (M  O  CO 

i-rcd^co~co'io^coii:r.-<  oTio'io'i.o'"*" 

(M       lOC^l  1-I<MX  C0.-HCO 


g68i  'r  'iior 


X  coi-ioo 


'SUOlfVZlUVS 

-UQ  -qns  •o.V' 


t^CO  CO 
CO  CO  CO 
(N  (M  O 
lO  X  o 


X-* 

coco 


o  ift  lO  I— I  in  rH  CO 

COM<COCO-^CO'*-rrl 


1J>-  o      O  l^C 


1-H  X  CO  ^        i^H  < 

05     o  1-=  m  o  . 


X  X  CO  X  O  C5 


1  m  o  X  .  _ 

liOOOCOXXi— l(Nr-icO 
■"^flrHr-li-li-lini-KMint^ 


'S68T  'l  'UVf 


ooooooo 

O  O  O  O  O  I-H  o 

in  o  o  in  o  o  o 
—T 'm"  co"  oT  of  of 
o  ^  05  X  -rt*  in  X 
05 1.^  o  CO  CO  CO  CO 


o  o  o 

8SS 


O  O  O  O  O  O  t 


05  O  1 

OXC 

CO  ^  ! 

cfx'c 


1  CO  O  c 
I  cOTt<i 
>  COCO  c 


(X  I-H  r-IC 


)00000< 
)00000< 

>  in  in  C5^in  o  < 
roTc^fco^co  CO  1 

i  CO  (M  CO  1— I  < 

)  CO  ^in  i>^co  t 

rCOgS-OCD 


o  o  o 
moo 
i^^oT.n 

X  X  o 

of  in 


ooooooo: 

ooooooo; 
o  o  o  o  m  m  o  1 


X        i>  m  o  1^  c-n^  CO 


■9681 
'l  'wof  'diiis 


O  CO_X_^CO  O  (N_CO_ 

co"  i-T  04"  oT-rjH" 
in  (M 


I  CO  CO  in  c 
1 05  CO  in  1 
I  .-I  in  o  ( 


)cor«rt003r-i'Mcoininc<iin-*ioi-^x 
sco-^-MoaTft^cooiOix-f^oioor^ 
5i>oo5coc5cooocooino^coo^i^co 


I  CO  T 

CO  (M 


Tfi  CO  Ol  CO  CO  X  C5  ' 


:S  8 


o  o     O  O  ( 

_    -  _  _  o  o     o  o  ; 

COXr-ICOO^m  COOi 


OOO  OOOOOO 
OOO  OOOOOO 
^OO  i-HtHCOCOOJCD 


lOOOOOO 


88888  8 

oi  in  o  CO  o  CO 


888 


o  o  o  o  o  < 
o  in  o  o 
in  CO    in  c 


ooooooooooooo< 
ooooooopoc  


i  o  o  o  o  o  o  o 


8888? 


I  oq  T-H  in  CO  CO  1 


OOOOOO  oooo 

OOOOOO  oooo 
coxcooiHco  inoxm 


iO  ooooo 
i  o  ooooo 
o    o  X  in  !M  o 


coooo 

g.'^8?5 


ooooooo 
ooooooo 
oi  o  in  CO  CO  o  o 


T-l  01  CO       CO  r-(  CO 


X  X  CO  CO  O  05 


050inr-io5coxTriC2t^oi-^coT-n>coiH03coincoi— ■co-Ht^fOrtX05coxino5cot^cooioi-H 
i^o>xxi^05t^t^t--r~g5coxxt^xo5i^t^xxa5Xxxxxi^i^i^xxi^xi>xxi^o> 
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 


X  t- rH  CO  T— in  ^  T-H 


o3  a>  o 


V.'BV.'E'BV.V,  a  o  c  c  o 


148 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh, 


MEMBERS  IN  GOOD  STANDING  JANUARY  1st,  1895. 


NAME  OF  ORDER. 


MEMBERSHIP. 


NO.  SUBORDINATE 
ORGANIZATIONS. 


Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen  

Royal  Arcanum  , , 

Knights  of  Honor  

Modern  Woodmen  of  America  , 

Knights  and  Ladies  of  Honor  , 

Knights  of  Maccabees  (World)   , 

Independent  Order  of  Foresters  

Knights  of  Maccabees  (Michigan)  

Americi\n  Legion  of  Honor  

National  Union  

Order  of  Chosen  Friends  

Knights  of  Pythias  (Endowment  Rank) 

Equitable  Aid  Union  , 

Order  of  Golden  Cross  , 

Woodmen  of  the  World  , 

Improved  Order  Heptasophs  , 

Order  Pilgrim  Fathers  

New  England  Order  Protection  

Royal  Templars  of  Temperance  , 

Royal  Society  of  Good  Fellows  

Protected  Home  Circle  , 

Royal  League  

Order  of  Shield  of  Honor  

Home  Porum  

Order  Golden  Chain  

Home  Circle  

Iowa  Legion  of  Honor  

Knights  and  Ladies  of  Security  

Knights  and  Ladies  Golden  Star, 

National  Provident  Union  

Fraternal  Aid  Association  

Order  of  Select  Friends  

Ot'der  Mutual  Protection  

Knights  of  the  Golden  Rule  

Knights  of  St.  John  and  Malta  

Legion  of  the  Red  Cross  f  

National  Reserve  Association  

Knights  of  the  Golden  Eagle  

Artisans'  Order  of  Mutual  Protection. . 

Fraternal  Legion  

Empire  Knights  of  Relief  

Eclectic  Assembly.  


341,371 

4973 

159,307 

]588 

121,085 

2580 

114,945 

2650 

80,763 

1918 

76,620 

1757 

70,055 

1875 

60,949 

901 

56,060 

1086 

44,707 

686 

37,779 

738 

36,371 

2112 

29,203 

880 

24,762 

455 

20,272 

739 

19,563 

276 

18,338 

161 

15,768 

231 

12,975 

510 

12,870 

228 

12,201 

188 

11,610 

113 

10,401 

108 

10,196 

400 

9,142 
7,183 

149 

182 

6,350 

191 

6,044 

206 

5,921 

71 

5,900 

89 

4,826 

162 

4,190 

100 

3,664 

67 

3,625 
3,562 

87 

87 

3,542 

51 

3,324 

87 

3,093 

829 

2,804 

28 

2,585 

52 

2,046 
313 

99 

8 

The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


i48tt 


COST  OF  INSURANCE  IN  1894. 


NAME  OF  OEDEE. 


Home  Forum  

Fraternal  Aid  Association  

Modern  Woodmen  of  America  

Royal  League  

National  Reserve  Association  

Order  of  Select  Friends  

New  England  Order  of  Protection. . . 
Knights  of  Maccabees  (Michigan). . . . 

National  Union  

Woodmen  of  the  World  

Iowa  Legion  of  Honor.  

Knights  of  Maccabees  (World)  

Improved  Order  Heptasophs  

Knights  of  St.  John  and  Malta  

Protected  Home  Circle  

Order  Pilgrim  Fathers  

Royal  Arcanum  

Order  Golden  Chain  

Independent  Order  of  Foresters  

Order  of  Golden  Cross  

Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen. . 

Knights  of  the  Golden  Rule  

Home  Circle  

Order  Mutual  Protection  

Legion  of  the  Red  Cross  :  

Order  of  Shield  of  Honor  

Fraternal  Legion  

Empire  Knights  of  Relief  

Knights  of  Pythias  (Endowment  Rank) 

Royal  Society  of  Good  Fellows  

Knights  and  Ladies  Golden  Star  

Knights  and  Ladies  of  Honor  

National  Provident  Union  

Order  of  Chosen  Friends  

Knights  of  the  Golden  Eagle  

E^quitable  Aid  Union  

Artisans'  Order  of  Mutual  Protection. 

Royal  Templars  of  Temperance  

Knights  of  Honor  

American  Legion  of  Honor  


COST  OF  INSUEANCE  PEE 

a 

.  a> 

$1,000  1894. 

30  Years. 

35  Years. 

40  Years. 

7 

$  3.00 

$  3.00 

$  3.50 

8 

4  00 

4.40 

4.80 

11 

4.75 

4.95 

5.12 

9 

4.19 

5.04 

6.17 

12 

4.80 

5.40 

6.24 

13 

5.20 

5.85 

6.50 

15 

5.25 

6.00 

6.75 

5 

5.00 

6.25 

7.50 

18 

5.40 

6.30 

7.20 

13 

5.85 

6.50 

7.80 

15 

7.50 

7.50 

7.50 

13 

6  50 

7.80 

9.75 

10 

7.04 

8.04 

;».68 

15 

6.60 

8  40 

9.60 

12 

7.20 

8.40 

9.60 

14 

7.70 

8.75 

9.45 

16 

7.36 

8.96 

10.99 

17 

7.65 

9.35 

11.56 

12 

8.64 

9  36 

10  56 

16 

8.96 

9.92 

11.20 

20 

10.21 

10.21 

10.21 

18 

9.20 

10.80 

12.60 

19 

9.12 

25 

10.00 

11.25 

12  50 

23 

11.50 

11.50 

11.50 

47 

11.75 

11. '25 

11.75 

22 

9.68 

11.88 

14.04 

12 

10.40 

11.96 

13.40 

13 

10.20 

12.00 

13.80 

53 

10.60 

12.19 

13.25 

24 

10.56 

12.96 

15.36 

29 

11.60 

13.05 

14.50 

24 

10.80 

13.20 

15.60 

15 

12.00 

13.50 

15.00 

31 

15.50 

15.50 

15.50 

18 

14.00 

15.56 

17.50 

7 

14.00 

16.00 

18.00 

26 

14.40 

16.10 

18.27 

32 

13.34 

16.64 

20.16 

36 

14.96 

18.36 

21.76 

1486  The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


MANAGEMENT  EXPENSE  IN  1894. 


NAME  OF  ORDER.                                     iPER  MEMBER. 

TOTAL. 

$  .48 

,«    5  270  en 

.51 

.58 

Order  Shield  of  Honor  

.63 

6  515  39 

Home  Forum  

.66 

6,766.73 

.66 

.67 

81  987  79 

Knights  of  the  Golden  Eagle  

.79 

2  631  37 

Knights  of  St.  John  and  Malta  

.84 

3  809  31 

.86 

15,306.00 

.95 

.96 

23,903. 18 

1.00 

58^854  08 

Artisans'  Order  of  Mutual  Protection  

1.00 

3  380  00 

Knights  and  Ladies  Golden  Star  

1.00 

6  134  78 

National  Provident  Union  

1.02 

6  134.21 

1.02 

3  543  89 

1.14 

51,366.75 

1.21 

34^635. 97 

1.26 

7  854  3=i 

Royal  Templars  of  Temperance  

1.29 

J.  ij,  tvOO.  i70 

National  Reserve  Association,  

1.34 

4,468. 12 

1.37 

78  031  19 

1.39 

4,631.11 

Order  of  Select  Friends  

1.42 

5,954.46 

1.46 

28,661.00 

1.50 

56,681.00 

Knights  and  Ladies  of  Security  

1.65 

10,000.00 

Knights  of  Pythias  (Endowment  Rank)  

1.65 

57,391.37 

1.65 

24,289.30 

1.67 

561,591.66 

1.67 

11,656.13 

1.71 

6,101.85 

1.73 

114,875.18 

1.78 

55,613.41 

1.83 

8,861.43 

2.08 

21,974.67 

Independent  Order  of  Foresters  

2.13 

133,156.92 

2.46 

21,503.00 

Royal  Society  of  Good  Fellows  

2.72 

35,056.56 

Empire  Knights  of  Relief  

4.51 

7,787.70 

6.39 

1,349.87 

The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


148c 


INSURANCE  IN  FORCE  —  LOSSES  PAID  IN  1894. 


XAME  OF  ORDER. 

Total  Insurance 
in  Force 

Tqti     1         1 QQ^ 

J  an,  ibi,  loyo. 

Losses  Pnid. 
in  isyi. 

Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen  

$682,742,000 

$7,116,807.99 

463,063,500 

3  959,599.98 

236,713,500 

1,104,500.00 

225,422,500 

3,845,116.65 

American  Legion  of  Honor  

142,901,500 

2,751,079.00 

National  Union  

136,726,000 

1,154,000.00 

Knights  of  Maccabees  (World)  

115,366,000 

674,794.81 

Knights  and  Ladies  of  Honor  

88,480,000 

1,089,123.80 

86,506.500 

511,162.30 

Knights  of  Maccabees  (Michigan)  

84,640,000 

437,181.09 

Knights  of  Pythias  (Endowment  Rank).. 

76,270,000 

809,560.00 

57,005.000 

948,150.00 

43,511,010 

794,981.66 

41,612,200 

215,400.00 

39,798,000 

173,750.00 

Improved  Order  Heptasophs  

36,799,000 

285,000.00 

34,880,000 

411,504.78 

30,725,000 

276,000.00 

29,811,000 

192,000.00 

Royal  Society  of  Good  Fellows  

27,210,500 

323,859.78 

Order  of  Golden  Chain  

22,278,500 

192,405.50 

Roval  Templars  of  Temperance  

16,763,400 

317,636.25 

Home  Forum  

16,645,500 

22,000.00 

15,138,000 

156,000.00 

14,523,500 

67,500.00 

Iowa  Legion  of  Honor  

12,609,000 

91,000.00 

National  Provident  Union  

11,631,000 

150,000.00 

10,695,500 

21,687.90 

Order  Shield  of  Honor  

10,401,000 

104,000.00 

8,689,000 

28,277.09 

Order  of  Select  Friends  

7,791,000 

54,098.30 

5,789,000 

55,982.25 

5,649,000 

78,179.59 

4,673,000 

9,000.00 

Knights  of  St.  John  and  Malta  

4,383,000 

32,000.00 

Empire  Knights  of  Relief  

4,342,000 

13,000.00 

3,692,000 

63,258.88 

3,536,000 

35,000.00 

Artisans'  Order  Mutual  Protection  

3,093,000 

18,500.00 

Knights  of  the  Golden  Eagle  

3,093,000 

3,093.00 

Eclectic  Assembly  

389,500 

1,500.00 

148c?  The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


DEATH  RATE  AND  AVERAGE  AGE  — 1894. 


NAME  OF  ORDER. 

AVERAGE  AGE 

MORTALITY  PER 

JAN.  ist,  ioyo. 

1  Ann  1  Qc\A 

33.33 

1.56 

36. 

2.10 

2.27 

37. 

2.75  . 

33.5 

3. 

34. 

4.5 

36.87 

4.98 

37.5 

5. 

36.99 

5.08 

Independent  Order  of  Foresters  

34.8 

5.39 

35. 

5.7 

35.75 

6.05 

38. 

6.5 

38.28 

7. 

New  England  Order  of  Protection  

* 

7.02 

38. 

7.25 

35.75 

7.58 

39.87 

7.61 

Order  Golden  Chain  

36. 

8. 

Improved  Order  Heptasophs  

38.1 

8. 

41.25 

.8.4 

40.23 

8.74 

39.66 

9.33 

Order  Shield  of  Honor  

* 

9.50 

38. 

9.55 

36. 

9.7 

37.44 

9.89 

41. 

10.43 

43. 

10.7 

37.8 

11.03 

40.82 

11.3 

Knights  and  Ladies  of  Honor  

* 

11.6 

Knights  of  Pythias  (Endowment  Rank). . . 

41.26 

12.06 

34.80 

12.75 

36. 

13. 

40. 

13. 

Royal  Templars  of  Temperance  

47.5 

15.7 

36. 

16. 

Equitable  Aid  Union  

41.51 

16. 

*Not  reported. 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


USe 


DATE  OF  ORGANIZATION  AND  AGE  OF  SOCIETIES. 


AGE  JAN 

NAME  OF  OEDEE. 

DATE  OEGANIZED. 

YEABS. 

MONTHS. 

Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen  

Oct. 

27, 

1868 

26 

3 

Royal  Templars  of  Temperance  

Feb. 

16, 

1870 

24 

11 

June 

30, 

1873 

21 

7 

June 

1, 

1874 

20 

7  . 

July 

4, 

1876 

18 

6 

June 

23, 

1877 

17 

7 

Knights  and  La'dies  of  Honor  

Oct. 

6, 

1877 

17 

3 

Knights  of  Pythias  (Endowment  Rank).. 

Nov. 

1, 

1877 

17 

2 

1878 

17 

Aug. 

28, 

1878 

16 

5 

Dec. 

18, 

1878 

16 

1 

March  2, 

1879 

15 

10 

March  15, 

1879 

15 

10 

Iowa  Legion  of  Honor  

March  19, 

1879 

15 

10 

May, 

1879 

15 

8 

Order  of  Golden  Rule  

Aug. 

16, 

1879 

15 

5 

Oct. 

2, 

1879 

15 

3 

May, 

1881 

13 

8 

June 

11, 

1881 

13 

7 

Order  of  Golden  Chain  

Dec. 

2, 

1881 

13 

1 

Feb. 

23, 

1882 

12 

11 

Oct. 

1, 

1882 

12 

3 

Jan. 

1, 

1883 

12 

Jan. 

5, 

1883 

12 

Knights  of  St.  John  and  Malta  

Mar. 

13, 

1883 

11 

10 

Knights  of  Maccabees  (World)  

Aug. 

1, 

1883 

11 

4 

Northern  Mutual  Relief  Association  

Sept. 

19, 

1883 

11 

3 

Nov. 

11, 

1883 

2 

Order  of  Chosen  Friends  

Nov. 

11, 

1883 

11 

2 

Knights  and  Ladies  Golden  Star  

1884 

11 

Fraternal  Mystic  Circle  

Jan. 

1, 

]885 

9 

11 

Or  der  Shield  of  Honor  

Nov. 

1, 

1885 

9 

3 

Protected  Home  Circle  

Aug. 

7, 

1886 

8 

4 

Empire  Knights  of  Relief  

Jan. 

1, 

1889 

6 

Fraternal  Aid  Association  

Oct. 

14, 

1890 

4 

2 

Woodmen  of  the  World  

Jan. 

1, 

1891 

4 

7 

May 

8, 

1891 

3 

7 

Knights  of  Golden  Eagle  (Death  Benefits). 

Sept. 

1, 

1891 

3 

3 

Knights  and  Ladies  of  Security  

Feb. 

22, 

1892 

2 

10 

Home  Forum  

Jan. 

1, 

1893 

2 

Eclectic  Assembly  

Jan. 

3, 

1893 

2 

148/ 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


INCREASE  DURING  1894. 


NAMK  OF  ORDER. 


INCREASE 
MEMBERSHIP. 


INCREASE 
LODGES. 


Modern  Woodmen  of  America  

Knig-hts  of  Maccabees  (World)  

Independent  Order  of  Foresters  

Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen  

Royal  Arcanum  

Knights  of  Maccabees  (Michigan)  

Home  Forum  

Woodmen  of  the  World  

American  Legion  of  Honor  

Knights  and  Ladies  of  Honor  

Knights  and  Ladies  of  Security  

Improved  Order  Heptasophs  

Knights  of  Pythias  (Endowment  Rank) 

Protected  Home  Circle  

Order  of  Golden  Cross  

Royal  Society  of  Good  Fellows  

New  England  Order  Protection  - . . 

Order  Chosen  Friends  

Royal  League  

Fraternal  Aid  Association  

Order  Pilgrim  Fathers  

National  Union  

Northern  Relief  Association  

Order  Golden  Chain  

Royal  Templars  of  Temperance  

Legion  of  the  Red  Cross  

Empire  Knights  of  Relief  

Order  Select  Friends  

Home  Circle  

Knights  Golden  Rule  

Artisans'  Order  Mutual  Protection  

Knights  and  Ladies  Golden  Star  

Knights  St.  John  and  Malta  

Order  Mutual  Protection  

Eclectic  Assembly  

Order  Shield  of  Honor  , 

Iowa  Legion  of  Honor  

Fraternal  Legion  , 

National  Provident  Union  

Knights  of  Golden  Eagle  

Equitable  Aid  Union  

Knights  of  Honor  


26,722 

554 

2o'l51 

527 

15^571 
12',  596 

372 

142 

11,083 

45 

6,861 

49 

6^850 
6^215 

298 

81 

6,016 
5,608 

1 

76 

4^780 
4^494 

150 

43 

3,469 

314 

3,345 

53 

2,655 

48 

2^194 

9 

2,116 

20 

l',887 

28 

1,865 

9 

1,670 

47 

l'390 

10 

1^148 
1,073 

30 

18 

838 

21 

732 

13 

679 

12 

645 

24 

586 

6 

417 

4 

325 

4 

283 

260 

3 

242 

11 

222 

200 

"4 

171 

1 

140 

4 

*62 

*1 

*354 

2 

*397 

*1,965 

13 

*2,269 

15 

*Decrease. 


The  Woodman'' s  Hand  Book. 


148g 


SALARIES— 1894. 


NAME  OF  ORDER. 


PRESI- 
DENT. 


SECRE-  TREAS- 
TARY.  URER. 


Independent  Order  of  Foresters  

Knights  of  Honor  

Royal  Arcanum  

Knig-hts  of  Maccabees  (World)  , 

American  Legion  of  Honor  

Royal  Society  of  Good  Fellows  

Knights  and  Ladies  of  Honor  

Order  of  Chosen  Friends  , 

National  Union  

Fraternal  Mystic  Circle  

Modern  Woodmen  of  America  , 

Knights  of  Pythias  

Order  Pilgrim  Fathers  , 

Woodmen  of  the  World  

Order  of  Golden  Cross  

Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen. . , 

Order  Golden  Chain  , 

Royal  League  

Improved  Order  Heptasophs  , 

Protected  Home  Circle  , 

Empire  Knights  of  Relief  

National  Reserve  Association  

New  England  Order  Protection  

Knights  of  Maccabees  (Michigan)  

Equitable  Aid  Union  

Home  Circle  , 

Royal  Templars  of  Temperance  

National  Provident  Union  

Knights  and  Ladies  Golden  Star. . .  . . . 

Knights  of  the  Golden  Rule  

Iowa  Legion  of  Honor  

Order  of  Shield  of  Honor  

Artisans'  Order  of  Mutual  Protection. 

Fraternal  Aid  Association . ,  

Order  Mutual  Protection  

Order  of  Select  Friends  

Knights  of  .St.  John  and  Malta  

Legion  of  the  Red  Cross  

Fraternal  Legion  

Knights  of  the  Golden  Eagle  


$8,000 
4,000 
3,500 
5,000 
3,000 
3,600 
2,500 
3,000 
1,200 
4,000 
2,000 
2,000 
1,200 
3,000 
1,200 
1,000 
1,800 
600 
1,500 
2,000 
600 
1,800 
1,000 
1,000 
1,800 
300 
1,000 
500 
400 
400 
800 


600 
50 


300 
100 


!  5,000 
4,200 
5,000 
5,000 
3,900 
3,000 
2,500 
2,500 
3.500 
i;500 
2,500 
3,000 
2,500 
1,500 
1,800 
3,000 
1,800 
3,000 
2,000 
1,500 
2,500 
1,800 
1,500 
2,000 
1,350 
2,200 
1,800 
1,500 
1,400 
1,200 
1,200 
1,500 
2,000 
1,200 
1,500 
1,200 
900 
800 
600 
600 


12,000 
3,600 
3,000 
1,000 
2,500 
2,000 
2,500 
2,000 
2,500 
600 
600 

1,200 
300 

1,700 
400 
750 
600 
600 
500 
600 

1,000 
500 
850 
500 

500 
400 
600 
100 


100 
300 
300 
100 
200 
200 
100 


148/i,  The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


Table  Showing  Membership  and  Death  Rate  of  the  A.  O. 
U.  W.,  in  naeh  State,  Yeari894. 


Name  of  Grand  Lodge  and  Grand  Recorder's  Address. 


PENNSYLVA.NIA  GRAND  LODGE. 

J.  M.  McNair,  Grand  Recorder,  Pittsburg,  Penn  

Ohio  Grand  Lodge. 

Walter  Pickens,  Grand  Recorder,  Toledo,  O  

Kentucky  Grand  Lodge. 

D.  C.  Kennedy,  Grand  Recorder,  Ludlow,  Ky  

Indiana  Grand  Lodge. 

Fred.  Baker,  Grand  Recorder,  Evansville,  Ind  

Iowa  Grand  Lodge. 

L.  O.  Howland,  Grand  Recorder,  Cedar  FaUs,  Iowa  

New  York  Grand  Lodge. 

N.  J.  Horton,  Grand  Recorder,  Dunkirk,  N.  Y  

Illinois  Grand  Lodge. 

Charles  P.  Hitch,  Grand  Recorder,  Paris,  111  

Missouri  Grand  Lodge. 

W.  F.  Bohn,  Grand  Recorder,  St.  Louis,  Mo  

Minnesota  Grand  Lodge. 

Olof  Olson,  Grand  Recorder,  Will  mar,  Minn  

Wisconsin  Grand  Lodge. 

H.  C.  Heath,  Grand  Recorder,  La  Crosse,  Wis  

Tennessee  Grand  Lodge. 

W.  H.  Weakley,  Grand  Recorder,  Nashville,  Tenn  

Michigan  Grand  Lodge. 

W.  Warne  Wilson,  Grand  Recorder,  Detroit,  Mich  

California  Grand  Lodge. 

D.  S.  Hirshberg-,  Grand  Recorder,  San  Francisco,  Cal  

Ga.,  Ala.,  Miss..  N.  and  S.  Car.,  and  Florida  Grand  Lodge. 

Joseph  Ehrlich,  Grand  Recorder,  Albany,  Ga  

Kansas  Grand  Lodge. 

E.  M.  Forde,  Grand  Recorder,  Emporia,  Kas  

Ontario  Grand  Lodge. 

M.  D.  Carder,  Grand  Recorder,  St.  Thomas,  Ont  

Oregon  Grand  Lodge. 

Newton  Clark,  Grand  Recorder,  Portland,  Ore  

Massachusetts  Grand  Lodge. 

J.  Edward  Burtt,  Grand  Recorder,  Boston,  Mass  

Maryland  Grand  Lodge. 

A.  F.  Colbert,  Grand  Recorder,  Baltimore,  Md  

Texas  Grand  Lodge. 

William  P.  Cole,  Grand  Recorder,  Dallas,  Texas  

Nevada  Grand  Lodge. 

John  Lothrop,  Grand  Recorder,  Dayton,  Nevada  

Colorado,  New  Mexico,  and  Arizona  Grand  Lodge. 

W.  T.  Boyd,  Grand  Recorder^  Denver,  Col   : 

Nebraska  Grand  Lodge. 

George  H.  Barber,  Lincoln,  Neb  

The  Dakotas  Grand  Lodge. 

J.  D.  Lavin,  Grand  Recorder,  Columbia,  S.  D  

Montana  Grand  Lodge. 

James  Sullivan,  Grand  Recorder,  Helena,  Mont  

Washington  Grand  Lodge. 

J.  M.  Pickins,  Grand  Recorder,  Chehalis,  Wash  

New  Jersey  Grand  Lodge. 

J.  H.  Lippincott.  Grand  Recorder,  Camden,  N.  J  

British  Columbia  Grand  Lodge. 

H.  Youdall,  Grand  Recorder,  New  "Westminster,  B.  C  

Manitoba  and  N.  W.  T.  Grand  Lodge. 

J.  M.  Matthew,  Grand  Recorder,  Winnipeg,  Man  

Utah,  Wyoming,  and  Idaho  Grand  Lodge. 

D.  Thorburn,  Grand  Recorder,  Ogden,  Utah  

Delaware  Grand  Lodge. 

C.  E.  Woods,  Grand  Recorder,  Wilmington,  Del  

Quebec  and  Maritime  Province  Grand  Lodge. 

A.  T.  Patterson,  Grand  Recorder,  Montreal,  Quebec  

West  Virginia  Grand  Lodge. 

Silas  M.  Hathaway,  Grand  Recorder,  Wheeling,  W.  Va  — 
Supreme  Lodge. 

M.  W.  Sackett,  Supreme  Recorder,  Meadville,  Penn   

Total  


Certificates, 
in  Force 
Jan.1,1895. 

Death  Rate 
per  1,000. 

16,697 

15.14 

4,948 

20.16 

2,219 

24.16 

5,616 

11.02 

9,555 

7.82 

29,088 

16.32 

18,504 

13.25 

24,018 

11.94 

13,124 

8.12 

6,890 

13.24 

1.851 

16.08 

22,652 

9.61 

16,614 

15.14 

2,191 

15.49 

25,438 

6.58 

27,561 

7.60 

6,440 

7.84 

41,005 

7.29 

3,541 

12.35 

3,892 

14.58 

1,103 

21.77 

7,309 

7.21 

18,066 

5.53 

8,536 

5.85 

4,366 

8.42 

4,905 

7.02 

4,931 

8.60 

645 

10.55 

1,937 

7.23 

2,944 

8.44 

2,554 

6.10 

2,226 

5.66 

341,371 


10.43 


The  Woodman^ 8  Hand-Book. 


Report  of  Committee  on  Statistics  and  Good  of 

the  Order, 

To  the  National  Fraternal  Congress  : 

Gentlemen  :  Your  Committee  on  Statistics  presents  for  your  con- 
sideration a  detailed  statement  of  the  condition  of  the  orders  com- 
posing this  Congress  to  such  extent  as  information  could  be  readily 
obtained. 

The  Knights  and  Ladies  of  Honor,  with  us  in  1892  and  now  with- 
drawn from  the  Congress,  are  included  in  this  tabulation  for  the  rea- 
son that  was  their  condition  not  shown  a  comparison  of  the  figures  of 
1893  with  1892  would  indicate  a  positive  loss  to  fraternal  assurance 
generally,  instead  of  merely  a  loss  in  the  membership  of  this  Con- 
gress. 

The  difficulty  of  former  years  confronts  us  in  this,  that  the  variance 
in  keeping  records  prevents  any  report  whatever  on  many  subjects  of 
not  only  general  but  vital  interest. 

Your  committee  believes  this  condition  should  be  remedied,  and 
that  it  could  very  readily  be  done,  each  retaining  its  present  system, 
if  the  recording  officers  of  the  various  bodies  would  get  in  closer 
touch,  and  by  correspondence  receive  and  impart  most  valuable  infor- 
mation as  to  how  any  given  thing  may  best  be  done,  and  how  any  part 
of  the  record  heretofore  neglected  may  be  brought  up  to  date.  Your 
committee  are  well  aware  that,  like  his  watch,  each  Supreme  Secre- 
tary believes  his  plan  the  best,  but  possibly  we  could  each  be  taught 
something  of  whose  existence  we  are  in  entire  ignorance,  did  we 
consent  and  then  submit  to  be  receptive. 

One  order  failed  to  make  any  report  and  another  declined  for  good 
reasons  to  submit  one.  One  new  order  appears,  and  in  addition  the 
figures  relating  to  the  Knights  and  Ladies  of  Honor  are  given  for 
reasons  heretofore  explained.  The  figures  in  each  case  are  believed 
to  be  correct  and  just,  and,  where  possible,  have  been  verified  by 
reference  to  sworn  reports  made  to  different  insurance  departments. 

Your  committee  finds  from  reports  from  the  several  orders  the  fol- 
lowing condition  of  membership,  finances,  etc. 

MEMBERSHIP. 


Total  membership  January  1,  1893    1,208,483 

Members  admitted  in  1893    240,470 

Members  died  in  1893    13,149 

Members  lapsed  in  1893    120,838 

Net  membership  December  31,  1893    1,314,966 

A  net  gain  for  the  year  of   106,483 

PROTECTION. 

The  amount  written  in  1893  was  $  421,690,215 

The  amount  terminated  in  1893  was   249,376,332 

A  net  gain  in  protection  of   172,313,883 

Total  protection  in  force  December  31,  1893    2,611,162,033 


148i 


The  Woodman'' s  Hand-Book. 


FINANCES. 

BENEFIT  FUND. 


Balance  on  hand  December  31,  1892    $  1,929,450 

Collected  by  assessments,  etc.,  in  1893    27,422,441 

Benefits  paid  in  1893   26,945,780 

Balance  in  benefit  fund  December  31,  1893    2,405,359 

The  g-ain  in  amounts  collected  over  1892  was   1,839,520 

The  gain  in  benefits  paid  over  1892  was   1,622,302 

EXPENSE  FUND. 

Balance  on  hand  December  31,  1892    $  343,564 

Collected  for  this  fund  in  1893    1,812,545 

Expenses  paid  in  1893    1,814.110 


When  we  come  to  the  consideration  of  proportion  of  expenses  to 
benefits' paid,  we  find  a  condition  that  no  other  form  or  plan  of  insur- 
ance or  protection  —  call  it  what  you  will  —  of  any  form  or  nature  has 
ever  equalled,  it  being  but  $67.03  for  each  $1,000  paid  in  benefits. 

The  amount  of  protection  to  each  certificate  in  force  steadily  de- 
creases from  year  to  year,  being  $2,053  in  1891,  $2,016  in  1892,  and 
$1,985  in  1893. 

The  death  rate  in  1893  was  but  a  fraction  in  excess  of  ten  to  the 
thousand  lives  at  hazard  (10.421),  a  marked  reduction  from  the  preced- 
ing year.  This  death  rate  is  so  abnormally  low  when  compared  with 
the  rate  of  both  old  line  and  natural  premium  life  insurance  companies 
as  to  be  almost  incredible.  That  the  average  death  rate  in  thirty- 
three  associations  should  show  such  remarkable  results  may  rightfully 
ask  for  evidence  in  substantiation.  Your  committee  meet  such  chal- 
lenge, should  it  be  made,  with  one  demonstration  that  appears  to 
fully  meet  the  demand. 

The  Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen,  the  oldest  and  the  largest 
of  any,  has  been  selected  as  a  test,  because  its  age  being  greatest  it 
cannot  be  claimed  that  the  selection  was  unfairly  made  in  favor  of  a 
low  death  rate,  and  its  great  size  insures  a  fair  and  just  average.  Its 
total  membership,  December  31,  1893,  was  328,775;  but  its  lives  at 
hazard  during  the  year  were  320,392.  The  whole  number  of  deaths 
was  3,239,  and  its  death  rate  in  1893,  10.11  to  the  thousand,  as  against 
10.42,  the  average  death  rate  of  all  the  orders.  Some  of  our  number 
have  a  higher,  and  some  a  lower  rate,  and  it  may  be  said  that  the 
average  rate  is  unfair,  but  it  is  not  so.  Supposing  all  the  organizations 
represented  here  had  been  in  1893  merged  into  one  giant  order,  the 
death  rate  of  that  one  order  would  have  been  10.42.  We  are  dealing 
with  fraternal  assurance  represented  here  as  a  whole,  and  not  with  its 
component  parts. 

Our  loss  from  lapses,  withdrawals,  and  suspensions,  all  causes 
other  than  death,  was  eighty  to  the  thousand  members,  marking  the 
same  spirit  of  persistence  as  in  former  years.  The  increase  over  1892 
was  not  marked,  and  may  wholly  be  charged  to  the  business  depres- 
sion throughout  the  country,  and  not  to  loss  of  confidence  in  our  plan. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


The  cost  of  caring  for  protection  in  force  at  end  of  year  was  69 
cents  per  $1,000.    A  small  increase  in  cost  over  1892. 

As  in  former  years,  a  comparison  is  made  between  the  orders  com- 
posing this  Congress  and  twenty-five  of  the  leading  life  insurance 
companies  of  this  country,  not  for  the  purpose  of  disparaging  these 
companies,  or  making  undue  or  unworthy  claims  for  ourselves,  but 
merely  to  show  the  relative  growth,  condition,  and  importance  of  the 
two  plans. 

On  the  thirty-first  of  December,  1893,  the  showing  was  as  follows  : 
Twenty-five  old  line  life  insurance  companies  had  straight 


life  policies   1,167,049 

The  fraternal  organizations  represented  here  had  mem- 
bership of  ,   1,314,966 

Old  line  life  insurance  in  force  $3,213,431,147 

Fraternal  protection  in  force   2,611,162,033 

Life  insurance  paid   57.192,615 

Benefits  paid   26,945,780 

Life  insurance  policies  paid  (for  death)   19,112 

Benefit  certificates  paid  (for  death)   13,149 


Their  ratio  of  loss  to  mean  amount  insured  was  1.33  ;  with  us  it 
was  .95. 

In  expenses  of  management  a  just  comparison  cannot  be  made. 
We  know  that  our  expenses  for  securing  new  members,  payment  of 
salaries,  rent,  legal  expenses,  and  every  other  item,  excluding  subor- 
dinate lodge  expenses,  jwas  $1,814,110,  and  if  all  lodge  expenses  be 
included,  our  total  expense  account  of  every  name  and  nature,  for 
supreme,  grand,  and  subordinate  branches  and  medical  examiners' 
fees  would  not  exceed  $6,000,000,  while  their  expense  account  for  1893 
was  $48,636,986,  divided  as  follows  : 


Paid  agents  $  27,942,940 

Paid  officers  and  employes   6.443,767 

Paid  taxes  and  fees   2,784,367 

Paid  office  and  agency  expenses   11,465,912 


What  portion  of  this  expense  may  properly  be  charged  to  account 
of  plain  life  policies  cannot  be  determined  from  any  data  at  hand,  as 
it  covers  life,  endowment,  tontine,  and  all  other  policies.  This  is 
not  presented  to  show  that  the  companies  are  unduly  expensive  in 
the  pursuance  of  their  plan,  but  for  the  sole  purpose  of  showing  that 
our  plan  should  justly  be  commended  that  it  costs  so  much  less  to 
secure  practically  the  same  results. 

It  may  be  said  in  answer  to  this  that  these  companies  have  a  re- 
serve which  we  have  not.  This  is  conceded,  but  it  is  paid  for  in  an- 
other wa,y  than  through  the  expense  account.  If  they  and  we  were 
each  doing  a  plain  term  insurance  where  a  reserve  is  not  required  and 
the  volume  of  business  remains  the  same,  our  expenses  would  not 
change  materially,  neither  would  theirs  be  less. 

Trusting  that  the  presentation  here  offered  may  be  of  interest 
to^this  Congress  and  of  value  to  our  fraternities  at  large,  we  are. 

Respectfully, 

J.  E.  Shepard, 
D.  E.  Stevens, 
M.  W.  Sackett, 
Committee  on  Statistics. 


Modern 


Woodmen  of  America. 


a 


s  s  e 


S  S  S 


t5  i  t2 

III 


IPS 


IS? 


111 

S 


■COlOCOOO(N-*t>l>l>C<ltO 

.ooocoi--;?qoocot>Lqo 
!  00  cc     «5  ai    oc  ci  ifi  C5  c4 

.  O  CC  OC  CO  O  1— I  CO  00 

•   ^  rH  (N  !-l  lO       «0  O 


c-i  c4  o  o  cri  o  c^i  00 ■m'  o 

^  !C  rH  O  CO 

_  C<r     GC~.-h'i  '    '  - 


CO  cc  < 


rJCii-Hr-lLCCOOOOOlOLO 

c<i  fo  CO  i-H  cc  CO  CO  lO     cc  o 
ei  CO     o  ci  o  lO  o  oo' 
^  CO  tN  CO  X  ic  c;  o  lO  1-1 

COCOOlOCOCslCOr-liOtNl^ 

(rfo^coiff  x"gj'  CO  CO  r-'iM^i-T 


'lCX— cO-^COOaiOINin 
liOrHX-^COCOCOt^TflX 
ir-l05COC50«COlO(MC~5 


.  o  o  o  o  o  o  o 


oo--icno^_  ______ 

XCMiCOOt-OOOOO 

§  00  S  O  O  CO  o  So  ^io 
^COO -H  O  of  CO  OlOCO -f 
^  ,-1 -rfi  X      C^)      O  £52  O  O 
rH  OJ       lO  CO  03 


I       l>  CD  lO  1-1  I>-  CO  I 


o  lo  CO     (M     CO  lo  CO  o^  X 

CO_  O  CO  lO  O  X  LO  CO 

CO  ifi  !m'  c4  C3  lo  id  x"    co'  co 

l^COOlO'^COtMr-IOOCO 
CSi  LO  iH  O:  CO  C<1_C3  X_  X 

.„  co'i-Tc-f -^'oD'o'crriV 


OCOlOXiOCOOr-t--T-HI>; 

cocvii>^x'o5coa3idt-^ciT)H 

OlOCOlO'*COCOCOi-l'*lO 

ot-tNTf^ooinoco  CO  02  cn 

CO'co'i-TcO  ofco"l>-'"o"crO  CO 

^-l•^XI>col^i■^3r^oo 


<Ncos3i>i>.-iC5r-r^c- 

COCOOCOC31>-COXlOi-H 

(N  -m'  co"  co'  c:i  o  (oi  x'  i> 
ioco-ti,-iT-iiOTtHC<iiO(M 


^osi-iT-imcoooooio 

CQCOCOrHcqCOCOlOtMCO 

co'co-Hc3citc"idocor^ 

-  c0<MC0Xi0C3Oi0 


CO     00  cr>  o  • 
gooDxxojcjcr.a-.c:. 


)  X  00  00  X  OO  00 


d    •«  c3  73 

y  fl  75  CD  o 

MO  C5  >  C(H 

o  o  o  o 


^  X 


Exhibit  of  Business  Since  Organization. 


00 


CT>  to  rH  O  C3  O 


)0«5C 

)  O  c 


IC  o  o 

IM  CO  i-H 

CO  00  O 

Oa  O 

r-  CO  CO 

CO  of  CO 


S  o  o  o  o  o 
S  o  o  o  o  o 
o  CO  o  o  o  o 
2  g  oof 


sill 


CO  lO  Tt<  uO  CO 


I  ITS 


'2 

I  sss 


OCO  ! 
to  ^  ' 
oo'"co~( 


■  OlO 
CO 


03  ?0 


p£  i-H  CO  CO  lO 

1 


O  lO  O  O  lO  o 
I— I  O  Tt"  05  05  rH 

oo  oi  lO 

o    a>  CO 

CO  05  05  (M 

r-^Tiroo  CO 


8^ 

o>  <o 


Mm 

1  03 


OO 


St 


o 

o 

o 

lO 

CO  oi 

r-H  lO 
(NrH 

s 

«3 

CO 

Ol 

of 

oT 

CO 

-5  ^ 


;888i 


Soooooooooo  o 

^OOOOOOOOOO  CO 

^  ^  CO  d  oT  oo  oTo'cf  to-cc'r-T  i  -£ 

S CO  rH  Tfl  lO  0< 1-1       r-l  O 




aq  =2 


OI010iHCOT)<e«5CX)OICO 
SOI 


CO->*XCOOItOiOO'OW 


«i        CO  O  to  05  O  I 
CO  ri  (N  CO  to  ' 
Q    OJ  CO  0)_000  i-0_- 

J-  co'"'*'~'-o"t--rx''i-^ ' 

5;^    uO  r-l  r-l  r-(  r^ 


t  Oi  00  rH 

I  CO  o  OJ 


1  OOOOOiOOI^OO 

q  CH^-^iOCOOOtOOOCO 

iOC0I:^irT(31tOOlireC0iO 

^  o  oD        CO 00  rH  CO  oi 

t£  '"^      ^J*^  05  CO  to  C0_-*__iO_ 

e  to  ^  r-liO  CO CO  rH  i-^ 

^  ^rnrHr-.,-! 


o 


■  o  o  . 
03  +e  fl  ^  OS  •  o 


Modern  Woodmen  of  America.  c 


RECORD  OF  BENEFIT  CERTIFICATES. 


Year. 

In  force 
beginning 
of  year. 

Issued 
during  the 
year. 

Total 

Discontin- 
ued by 
suspension. 

Discontin- 
ued by 
death. 

In  force  at 
close 
ofyear. 

1883  

562 
788 
3,694 
4,706 
. .  8,139 
.  .  11,943 
.  .  17,950 
.  .  12,354 
.  .  14,348 
.  .  25,139 
.  .  24,385 
.  .  36,584 

562 

. .  1,350 
. .  4,966 
.  .  9,275 
. .  16,438 
. .  27,229 
. .  42,930 
. .  51,901 
. .  57,042 
.  .  77,224 
.  .  97,029 
..  124,807 

562 
1,272 
. .  4,569 
.  .  8,299 
. .  15,286 
.  .  24,980 
. .  39,-547 
.  .  42,694 
.  .  52,085 
.  .  72,&44 
.  .  88,223 
..  114,945 

1S84  

1885  

1886  

1887  

1888  

1889  

1890  

1891  

1892  

1893  

1894  

562 
1,272 
4,569 
.  .  8,299 
.  .  15,286 
,  24,980 
.  .  39,547 
,  42,694 
,  52,085 
.  .  72,644 
.  .  88,223 

76 
391 
954 

. .  1,112 
..  2,164 
.  .  3,283 
.  .  8.991 
4,671 
4,251 
. .  8.355 
. .  9,335 

2 

6 

22 
40 
85 
100 
216 
286 
329 
451 
527 

Grand  Totals, 

160,592 

43,583 

2,064 

114,945 

RECAPITULATION. 


Total  number  of  certificates  issued  from  January  Sth,  1883,  to  December 


31St,  1894   160,592 

Totalmumber  of  suspensions   43,583 

Total  number  of  deaths   2,064 

  45,647 

Total  number  of  certificates  in  force  December  31st,  1894   114,945 

Increase". January  1st,  1894,  to  December  31st,  1894    26,722 


MEMBERSHIP  STATEMENT,  JAN.  1,  1894,  TO  DEC.  31,  1894. 


1893. 

DEDUCTIONS. 

ADDITIONS. 

m 

Qond 
Jan. 

Good 
Dec 

STATE. 

'embers 
Standi 
1st,  m 

verage 

Tempor 
Suspe 

Deaths. 

Total. 

1 

II 
|| 

Ibtal. 

veraae 

Illinois  

37,817 

38. 

2,736 

204 

2,940 

10,043 

238 

10,281 

45,158 

37 

58 

9,405 

37.58 

934 

60 

994 

3,485 

90 

3,575 

11,986 

37 

42 

Wisconsin  

9,756 

36.70 

662 

60 

722 

4,109 

4,171 

13,205 

36 

28 

Kansas  

11,661 

37.68 

1,313 

78 

1,391 

3,991 

ti 

4,072 

14,342 

37 

21 

Nebraska  

11,098 

36.94 

2.030 

71 

2,101 

4,925 

165 

5,090 

14,087 

36 

47 

Minnesota  

3,412 

35.92 

415 

15 

466 

3,062 

28 

3,090 

6,036 

34 

60 

South  Dakota  

1,281 

36.18 

211 

218 

644 

18 

662 

1,725 

35 

90 

North  Dakota  

401 

33.86 

136 

3 

139 

804 

5 

809 

1,071 

32 

60 

2,765 

36.30 

435 

22 

457 

1,934 

30 

1,964 

4,272 

35 

73 

627 

32.87 

427 

7 

434 

2,870 

2,870 

3,063 

32 

90 

Total,  

88,223 

37.53 

9,335 

527 

9,862 

35,867 

717 

36,584 

114,945 

36 

99 

d  Exhibit  of  Business  Since  Organization. 


GENERAL  FUND  STATEMENT. 


From  Nov.  1,  1892,  to 
Dec.  31,  1893. 

Frcmi  Jan.  1,  189U  to 
Dec.  31,  189U. 

Balance  October  31st,  1892  

$59,196.08 

$  62,922.17 

Receipts  — 

$81,614 

00 

$  99,801 

00 

14,949 

15 

37,350 

98 

— 

1,691 

00 

98,254.15 

1,681 

50 

188,833.48 

157,450.23 

201,755.65 

Disbursements  — 

2,833 

30 

2,499 

98 

Clerk  hire,  Head  Clerk's  office  

8,852 

43 

9,671 

59 

1,473 

19 

1,557 

54 

Postage,  Head  Clerk's  office  

3,554 

82 

4,122 

59 

Salary  Head  Banker  

750 

00 

600 

00 

Expense  Head  Banker's  office  

217 

62 

320 

60 

Salary  Head  Consul  

2,862 

43 

1,999 

92 

Expense  Head  Consul's  office  

2,948 

55 

2,112 

42 

Board  of  Directors  

.  8,183 

54 

6,009 

44 

Litigation  

5,424 

70 

1,346 

44 

General  expense  

12,125 

92 

8,318 

31 

Modern  Woodman,  including  third- 

class  postage  ■  

22,647 

27 

16,625 

74 

12,144 

18 

32,821 

43 

Furniture  

122 

85 

654 

93 

Auditing  Committee  

457 

51 

540 

74 

273 

25 

134 

74 

Expense  Field  Work  

12,949 

23 

102,285.64 

Mileage  and  per  diem  Head  Camp  1892  

7,868 

32 

Expense  Head  Camp  1892   

2,288 

18 

94,528.06 

Balance  December  31st,  1893   

Balance  December  31st,  1894  

$62,922.17 

$  99,470.01 

ASSESSMENTS  LEVIED,  CLAIMS  PAID,  AND  AVERAGES. 


Assess- 
ned. 

ibursed 
•ies. 

)ership, 

io  to  1,0 
mbershi 

3| 

n  Force 
31st. 

Year. 

umber  of 
ments  Lei 

eath  Claii 

M 

s  s 
gftq 

btal  Meml 
Dec.  31st. 

Death  Rati 
verage  Me 

er  Capita 
Managcm 

verage  Ag 

isurance  t 
December 

< 

Ci 

*  ^ 

1883  

562 

$  1,180,000.00 

1884  

3 

1 

$  696.88 

1,272 

.78 

$  .72 

38.05 

2,590,000.00 

1885  

7 

6 

13,835.21 

4,569 

1.31 

.68 

37.46 

9,594,000.00 

7 

22 

40,519.59 

8,299 

2.65 

1.31 

36.25 

17,000,000.00 

1887  

8 

40 

81,000.00 

15,286 

3.11 

.94 

35.40 

32,080,000.00 

1888  

9 

85 

170,000.00 

24,980 

3.40 

1.04 

34.70 

53,180,000.00 

1889  

8 

100 

222,616.70 

39,547 

2.52 

1.62 

33.00 

83,048,000.00 

1890  

11 

222 

476,000.00 

42,694 

5.19 

1.17 

35.10 

89,624,000.00 

1891  

11 

238 

500,800.00 

52,085 

5.12 

.76 

36.20 

108,887,000.00 

1892  

11 

341 

695,000.00 

72,644 

5.17 

.72 

37.51 

151,857,000.00 

3893  

11 

428 

906,200.00 

88,223 

5.41 

.70 

37.53 

184,133,500.00 

1894  

11 

531 

1,104,500.00 

114,945 

5.08 

.62 

36.99 

236,713,500.00 

Total  

2014 

$4,211,168.38 

*Computed  upon  deaths  occurring,  and  not  on  claims  allowed. 


Reserve  Fund. 


N  this  department  the  author  has 
compiled  selections  treating  the  re- 
serve fund  from  both  standpoints, 
and  submits  a  few  introductory 
thoughts,  giving  his  own  conclu- 
sions on  this  question  : 

First.  We  are  of  the  opinion  that 
every  fraternal  insurance  society  should  in  its  infancy 
lay  aside  a  certain  per  cent  of  its  benefit  assessments  to 
be  used  in  the  future  in  reducing  the  cost  to  its  member- 
ship ;  this  would  properly  be  called  an  emergency 
fund." 

Second.  It  follows,  as  night  follows  day,  that  the  cost 
of  insurance  in  a  fraternal  society  depends  upon  the 
average  age  of  the  membership.  If  the  average  age  of 
the  membership  is  known  the  cost  of  insurance  is  easily 
determined.  As  a  society  grows  older  the  average  age 
increases,  and  consequently  the  cost.  As  the  years  go  by 
it  is  impossible  for  any  society  to  maintain  such  an  im- 
mense growth  as  to  keep  the  average  age  at  a  standstill. 

Third.  The  actuaries  have  made  the  estimate  that  the 
actual  cost  of  insurance,  where  the  increase  is  steady  and 
is  greater  than  the  losses  b}^  suspension  and  death,  is 
$10.00  for  each  $1,000  of  insurance.  Those  who  oppose 
the  reserve  fund  make  the  point  that  the  cost  of  insur- 
ance if  carried  by  the  Odd  Fellows  and  Masons  would 
have  been  about  this  amount,  and  that  these  societies 
have  had  a  sufficient  growth  to  have  carried  insurance  at 
about  this  cost  without  any  reserve  fund.  But  in  this 
argument  one  important  factor  is  overlooked.    New  fra- 


152 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


ternal  societies  are  constantlj^  being  organized,  and  they 
carry  the  members  at  an  amount  much  less  than  $10.00 
per  year  per  $1,000.  These  young  societies  get  the  in- 
crease in  membership  and  the  older  and  more  costly 
society  quits  growing,  and  consequently  the  cost  of 
insurance  becomes  too  burdensome.  If  the  cost  of  in- 
surance of  all  societies  was  established  at  $10.00  per 
$1,000,  or  if  there^  was  but  one  great  society  in  the  whole 
country,  no  reserve  fund  would  be  needed.  But  it  is  the 
competition  of  the  younger  societies  that  creates  the  ne- 
cessity of  some  provision  in  the  nature  of  an  emergency 
fund. 

Fourth.  While  the  society  is  young  and  the  cost  of 
insurance  small  a  certain  per  cent  of  the  benefit  fund 
should  be  set  aside  each  year.  This  accumulated  em- 
ergency fund  would  offer  an  inducement  to  younger  men 
to  join  the  society.  It  could  be  used  to  keep  the  assess- 
ments below  a  certain  maximum  limit.  Properly  invested 
the  interest  would  be  a  constantly  growing  accretion. 
Members  who  failed  to  do  their  duty  in  paying  assess- 
ments and  became  suspended  would  leave  behind  them, 
for  the  benefit  of  the  more  loyal  members,  the  amounts 
they  had  paid  into  the  emergency  fund. 

Fifth.  Fraternal  insurance  is  a  new  force  in  the 
history  of  the  United  States,  but  experience  has  already 
taught  us  that  as  our  societies  grow  older  and  are  brought 
into  competition  with  younger  societies  the  growth  ceases 
and  the  cost  of  insurance  constantly  increases.  This  rule 
is  inequitable.  The  only  remedy  is  for  the  society  when 
young  to  provide  for  an  emergency  fund.  It  is  true  that 
none  of  our  societies,  not  even  the  oldest,  is  likely  to 
reach  the  cost  of  old-line  insurance.  These  old-line 
companies  are  no  equal  competitors  to  any  fraternal 
insurance  society. 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Booh.  153 
A  Reserve  Fund  for  Fraternal  Orders. 


In  the  year  1888  the  writer  subscribed  to  views  on  this 
subject  expressed  substantial!}^  as  follows  : 

The  accumulation  and  maintenance  of  a  reserve  fund 
is  not  in  harmony  with  the  principles,  the  purposes,  or 
the  methods  of  the  system  upon  which  a  fraternal  bene- 
ficiary organization  is  founded.  It  is  not  necessary  for  its 
success,  perpetuity,  or  security.  On  the  contrary,  a  careful 
consideration  of  the  question  leads  to  the  apprehension  of 
danger  in  a  fund  of  sufficient  magnitude  to  be  worthy 
the  name  of  a  reserve  fund.  A  less  fund  will  be  attended 
with  many  of  the  menacing  evils  and  none  of  the  corres- 
ponding advantages  of  a  reserve.  The  true  mission  of  a 
fraternal  society  is  not  merely  the  collection  and  distri- 
bution of  pecuniary  benefits.  It  is  to  develop  in  the 
lives  and  homes  of  the  members  character  in  its  highest 
and  noblest  significance.  Its  purpose  is  not  alone  nor  as 
its  most  important  feature  to  protect  the  member's 
family  after  his  death,  but  to  make  him  by  the  practice 
of  benevolent  acts,  the  cultivation  of  his  charitable  in- 
stincts, and  the  practice  of  the  cardinal  principles  of  his 
order,  a  better  man  —  a  more  worthy  husband  and  father 
—  and  his  wife,  sons,  and  daughters  true  women  and  men. 
Faithful  and  persistent  adherence  to  this  idea  and  the 
universal  dissemination  throughout  the  society's  member- 
ship of  a  strong  fraternal  sentiment  will  become  a  safe- 
guard more  reliable  than  a  monetary  reserve." 

More  than  five  years  have  passed  since  these  views 
were  declared.  They  have  been  j^ears  not  uneventful  in 
the  history  of  the  beneficiary  system.  More  and  more  as 
the  years  come  and  go,  each  freighted  with  the  lessons  of 
experience,  do  we  become  impressed  with  the  necessity 
of  throwing  around  our  associations  all  the  protection 
which  the  best  business  judgment  demands.    Is  the  re- 


154 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


serve  fund  an  essential  for  absolute  security  ?  This  is 
no  new  question,  but  it  remains  as  yet  without  a  satisfac- 
tory answer.  There  is  probably  no  advocate  for  a  fund 
possessing  the  characteristics  of  a  reserve  fund  of  the 
insurance  companies.  The  term  more  commonly  used  is 
emergency  fund.  This  is  the  statutory  name  in  some 
states  for  a  fund  compulsory  upon  assessment  companies 
for  use  in  reduction  of  assessments,  or  in  such  other 
equitable  division  or  apportionment  as  the  company's 
rules  or  contracts  may  provide.  It  is  conceded  that  those 
who  favor  this  emergency  fund  in  a  fraternal  order  pre- 
sent strong  reasons  for  the  accuracy  of  their  position. 
The  fact  is  undeniable  that  in  the  history  of  every  society 
there  will  in  all  probability  be  a  time  or  times  when  such 
a  fund  would  prove  a  great  relief,  to  the  management  at 
least,  in  keeping  the  assessment  rate  equalized.  The 
advocates  urge  that  its  existence  will  increase  the  confi- 
dence of  the  membership  and  insure  their  stability  as 
members  ;  that  with  such  a  fund  always  available  death 
benefits  will  be  paid  with  greater  promptness,  and  mem- 
bers be  the  less  likely  to  withdraw  because  of  the  greater 
pecuniary  value  of  membership.  Perhaps  the  name 
itself  implies  nearly  all  which  can  be  said  in  its  favor. 
The  term  emergency  "  explains  the  reason  for  the 
fund's  existence. 

The  question  again  recurs  —  do  we  need  such  a  fund  ? 
Will  the  emergency  come  ?  and  if  so,  may  there  not  be 
other  sufficient  resources  to  meet  it  ? 

The  question  is  one  of  much  importance,  and  ought  to 
be  decided  correctly.  The  interests  involved  are  im- 
mense. 

The  estimated  membership  of  the  fraternal  orders  ex- 
ceeds 1,500,000.  If  the  average  certificate  is  $2,000,  the 
protection  promised  to  the  beneficiaries  of  our  system  is 
almost  inconceivable  in  magnitude.  Many  persons  are 
members  of  several  societies,  and  yet  it  may  not  be  ex- 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


155 


travagant  to  claim  that  at  least  there  are  500,000  indi- 
viduals who  are  depending  for  the  sacred  object  of  home 
protection  solely  upon  the  perpetuity  of  some  one  fra- 
ternal society.  The  blessings  of  education,  the  com- 
forts of  life,  the  difference  between  possible  destitution 
and  sufficiency  for  the  daily  wants  of  life  for  half  a  mil- 
lion homes,  at  least,  depend  upon  the  success  of  this 
system.  It  is  no  child's  play,  therefore,  for  the  diyersion 
of  the  hour  that  the  lodge-room  is  opened  and  its  work 
performed.  The  highest  wisdom  of  every  friend  of  fra- 
ternity must  therefore  be  in  continual  exercise  to  protect 
the  system  and  throw  around  it  ever}^  possible  safeguard. 

Fully  realizing  such  responsibility,  and  weighing  with 
due  consideration  this  as  one  of  the  vital  questions,  I  feel 
constrained  to  still  adhere  to  the  opinions  hereinbefore 
expressed,  that  a  reserve  fund  is  not  consonant  to  tlie 
fraternal  system,  even  when  it  partakes  of  the  character 
of  an  emergency  fund. 

One  substantial  objection  is,  that  as  a  rule  the  men 
best  fitted  to  manage  and  successfully  conduct  our  orders 
are  not  financiers.  It  is  no  discredit  to  them  or  their 
abilities  to  advance  this  statement.  In  fact  there  are  few- 
men  who  by  nature,  education,  or  experience  prove  them- 
selves such.  It  is  one  thing  to  collect  assessments,  how- 
ever large  they  ma}^  be,  keep  them  securely  deposited  in 
safe  banking  institutions  until  disbursed  under  the  ordi- 
nary mortuary  demands,  and  quite  another  to  invest  with 
discretion,  sagacity,  and  absolute  safety  the  millions  which 
would  constitute  even  a  moderate  emergenc}^  fund  of  such 
orders  as  the  Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen,  Knights 
of  Honor,  or  the  Royal  Arcanum.  The  supreme  bodies 
of  each  of  these  magnificent  fraternities  are  composed  of 
men,  not  only  of  commanding  abilities  in  their  several 
vocations,  but  also  skilled  in  the  special  work  of  a  frater- 
nal order.  Furthermore,  they  are  men  of  high  integrity, 
and  for  the  most  part  devoted  heart  and  mind  to  the 


156 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


noble  work  for  which  they  have  all  labored  earnestly  and 
in  many  cases  made  great  sacrifices.  And  yet  from  the 
more  than  two  hundred  members  composing  these  three 
supreme  bodies  would  it  be  easy  to  select  suitable  com- 
mitees,  with  financial  experience,  skill,  and  sagacity  to 
properly  manage  such  a  fund  and  maintain  as  should  be 
its  adequate  investment  ?  These  supreme  bodies  under 
our  system  are  representative  in  their  character.  The  fra- 
ternal order  gives  to  every  member,  by  delegated  au- 
thority, voice  in  its  management.  This  is  an  essential 
and  valuable  feature,  and  cannot  —  should  not  —  be 
abandoned.  Consequently  the  fitting  selection  to  properly 
financier  our  fund  to-day  may  be  changed  in  the  next 
year.  One  careless  or  injudicious  committee  may  undo 
the  work  of  years  of  wiser  predecessors. 

It  may  be  said  that  orders  when  they  have  found  a 
satisfactory  treasurer  or  finance  committee  re-elect  year 
after  year,  thus  rendering  the  position  reasonably  perma- 
nent. Tliis  is  true  ;  nevertheless  there  is  a  possibility  of 
and  the  power  to  change.  A  fair  view  of  this  question 
must  give  due  weight  to  the  foregoing  objection. 

It  may  not  be  inopportune  nor  uninstructive  to  recall 
in  this  connection  the  losses  which  have  resulted  from 
unfortunate  investments  by  those  charged  with  the  care  of 
the  immense  sums  in  the  hands  of  great  insurance  cor- 
porations, who  are,  presumably,  selected  for  their  especial 
fitness  for  such  work.  Disasters  are  not  unknown  to  fol- 
low the  efforts,  in  similar  directions,  of  those  considered 
financial  f^xperts  of  deservedly  high  reputation.  AVhile 
large  business  corporations,  insurance  and  others,  have 
withstood  such  losses  and  maintained  their  credit,  would 
this  be  true  of  a  fraternal  order  ?  We  depend  upon  the 
confidence  and  fraternal  co-operation  of  a  large  and 
widely-scattered  membership.  A  portion  of  such  mem- 
bership of  no  inconsiderable  consequence  do  not  keep  too 
well  informed  of  the  work  in  hand  or  the  true  condition 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book.  157 

of  affairs.  Viewed  through  the  lenses  of  ignorance,  of 
misconception,  or  of  misrepresentation,  a  small  disaster 
may  become  magnified  or  distorted.  A  loss  of  funds, 
either, by  dishonesty  or  unskillful  handling,  will  shake 
that  confidence  so  essential  to  success.  The  injury  which 
loss  of  a  portion  of  the  fund  may,  through  apprehension 
and  fear,  create,  wull  be  greater  in  proportion  than  any 
increase  of  confidence  produced  by  the  existence  of  the 
fund  itself. 

The  requirement  of  the  fraternal  order  to-day  is  not  so 
much  the  emergency  fund  as  the  education  of  its  mem- 
bership to  a  perfect  realization  of  the  order's  true  prin- 
ciples, its  real  aim.s,  its  usefulness,  its  power  to  do  good 
to  its  members  and  their  families,  its  helpfulness  in 
charitable  and  benevolent  pathways,  and  of  the  subord- 
ination of  the  insurance  feature,  as  such,  to  its  higher 
potencies  and  influences.  In  other  w^ords,  the  theory  of 
our  societies  being  that  the  real  reserve  fund  lies  in  their 
fraternity,  the  membership  must  be  persistently  taught 
this  truth,  and  by  repeated  lessons  and  advice  thoroughly 
imbued  with  this  sentiment.  Mutual  aid  and  co-opera- 
tion is  the  member's  constant  duty.  If  our  system  con- 
tinues to  work  as  it  has  hitherto  worked  with  marvelous 
success,  we  need  no  emergency  fund.  The  emergency 
certainly  has  not  yet  arisen.  With  painstaking  effort  to 
preserve  in  practice  and  in  harmonious  development, 
the  theory  upon  whicli  have  been  reared  these  magnifi- 
cent associations  of  men,  the  emergeficy  will  never  occur. 
The  duty  of  the  hour,  therefore,  lies  not  so  much  in  the 
accumulation  of  a  monetary  reserve  as  in  a  more  liberal 
and  an  increasing  expenditure  of  money  to  educate  every 
member  to  justly  appreciate  what  he  owes  to  his  order, 
and  what  it  can  and  will  do  for  him  and  his  if  he  will 
be  receptive  to  its  beneficial  influences.  There  should 
be  no  hesitation  on  the  part  of  members  to  contribute 
freely  and  abundantly  for,  and  the  governing  bodies  and 


158 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


their  officers  should  devote  their  untiring  energies  to- 
wards, this  object,  and  thus  will  be  constructed,  upon 
enduring  foundations,  which  no  emergency  can  shake, 
the  true  reserve  of  our  s^^stem,  in  harraony  ever  with  its 
aims  and  principles, /ra^erm^^. —  John  Haskell  Butler,  in 
the  Mutual  Underwriter. 


We  reproduce  above  an  article  written  by  John 
Haskell  Butler  on  A  Reserve  Fund  for  Fraternal 
Orders."  It  is  certainly  well  presented,  bristles  with  ar- 
guments in  favor  of  the  non-reserve  system,  and  perhaps 
will  be  received  with  unqualified  approval  by  such  ex- 
ponents. But  does  not  Mr.  Butler  fail  to  grasp  the  situa- 
tion in  its  various  aspects  ?    He  says  : 

''And  yet,  from  the  more  than  two  hundred  members 
composing  these  three  supreme  bodies  (Workmen, 
Knights  of  Honor,  and  Arcanum),  would  it  be  easy  to 
select  suitable  committees  with  financial  experience,  skill, 
and  sagacity  to  properly  manage  such  a  fund  and  main- 
tain as  it  should  be  its  adequate  investment  ?  These 
supreme  bodies  under  our  system  are  representative  in 
their  character.  The  fraternal  order  gives  to  every  mem- 
ber, by  delegated  authority,  voice  in  its  management. 
This  is  an  essential  and  valuable  feature,  and  cannot  — 
should  not  —  be  abandoned.  Consequently  the  fitting 
selection  to  properly  financier  our  fuud  to-day  may  be 
changed  in  the  next  year.  One  careless  or  injudicious 
committee  may  undo  the  work  of  years  of  wiser  prede- 
cessors." 

To  our  thinking,  such  a  position  is  calculated  to  ma- 
terially retard  the  progress  and  proper  development  of 
fraternal  insurance.  It  must  be  humiliating  to  one  of  an 
American  turn  of  mind  to  have  such  a  distrust  of  demo- 
cratic representative  methods  of  government.  The  idea 
that  wisdom  has  gone  out  of  the  people,  and  in  some 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


159 


mysterious  way  been  lodged  in  the  heads  of  a  few  per- 
sons, hardly  seems  to  be  consonant  with  the  underlying 
principles  of  the  system  ;  and  yet  this  is  preached  by 
men  who  are  supposed  to  be  champions.  One  of  the 
lessons  the  fraternities  have  to  teach  the  country  is  tliat 
democratic  government  of  insurance  and  other  financial 
institutions  is  safe,  economical,  stable,  and  conservative, 
and  that  the  fact  of  sweeping  changes  being  possible  is 
a  safety-valve  for  any  organization.  If  there  is  a  pos- 
sibility of  and  the  power  to  change  the  management  of 
an  organization,  it  will  be  less  at  the  mercy  of  selfish  fac- 
tions than  otherwise.  No  one  would  endeavor  to  in- 
augurate a  change  unless  for  cause.  If  such  a  change  is 
not  possible  cabals  have  an  organization  at  their  mercy. 

But,  aside  from  considerations  of  policy  and  the  prin- 
ciples of  co-operation,  there  is  another  phase  in  which 
this  matter  should  be  viewed.  The  belief  that  emergency 
reserves  should  not  be  created  for  fraternal  organizations, 
for  the  reason  that  it  would  not  be  easy  to  select  com- 
mitees  with  the  skill  and  sagacity  necessary  to  manage 
them,  does  not  meet  the  proposition  squarely.  It  is  an 
evasion.  It  seeks  to  avoid  a  condition  rather  than  to 
confront  it  fairly  and  squarely. 

If  a  reserve  is  necessary  to  perpetuate  an  organization 
and  maintain  its  calls  upon  the  membership  at  an  uni- 
form rate,  considerations  of  policy  should  not  be  allowed 
to  e::ert  too  much  influence.  The  question  to  be  con- 
sidered is,  how  can  the  best  safeguards  be  thrown  around 
it  ?  To  avoid  its  creation  for  these  reasons  would  be 
simply  to  postpone  action.  An  emergency  reserve  is  either 
necessary  or  it  is  not.  If  it  is  not,  considerations  of  ex- 
perienced skill  and  sagacity  should  not  enter  into  its  dis- 
cussion. We  believe  the  past  has  shown  the  advisability, 
if  not  the  necessity,  of  the  creation  of  a  snug  reserve  to 
guard  against  unforseen  contingencies,  to  preserve  the 
entity  of  an  organization,  and  to  attain  the  degree  of 


160 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


efficiency  which  should  always  be  present.  This  being  the 
case,  the  size  of  the  reserve  and  the  manner  in  which  it 
should  be  invested  w^ould  be  the  proper  subject  to  con- 
sider. We  think  Mr.  Butler  has  evaded  direct  issue  on 
this  question  in  the  article  referred  to. —  Fraternal  Moni- 
tor. 


Either  forward  or  backward  ;  there  is  no  middle  course 
to  be  followed  by  an  order.  To  push  the  work  in  all  di- 
rections, to  add  new  forces,  new  ideas,  new  factors  and 
promoters  means  success  and  achievement.  To  stand 
still  means  to  retrograde.  When  an  order  begins  to  lose 
enthusiasm,  wdien  nothing  is  done  by  the  supreme 
governing  body  to  inculcate  new  ideas  and  new  life  into 
the  corporate  body  of  the  organization,  then  it  can  be 
truthfully  said  that  it  is  approaching  the  danger  line,  if 
not  disruption  ;  it  does  not  stand  still,  it  retrogrades. 

No  body  of  men  is  better  cognizant  of  this  potent  fact 
than  are  the  managers  of  the  old-line  life  insurance  com- 
panies ;  and  the  greater  the  company  the  greater  the 
efforts  to  revivify  and  reanimate  the  body  by  infusing 
new  plans  of  operation  and  new  wares  to  offer  the  public. 
True,  a  great  many  old-line  companies  have  failed  —  eight 
hundred,  in  round  numbers.  These  failures,  however,  can 
largely  be  attributed  to  connivance  and  machinations  at 
the  hands  of  those  wdiose  duty  it  was  to  exercise  super- 
visory powers.  But  we  do  not  wish  to  enter  into  the 
relative  merits  of  old-line  and  fraternal  insurance,  or  test 
the  standards  of  honesty,  morality^  and  probity  that 
should  be  possessed  by  the  leaders  of  both  systems,  but 
we  w^ish  to  say  loudly,  clearly,  and  emphatically  to  all 
fraternal  men  to  keep  ever  on  the  watch  for  methods  and 
manners  that  are  not  only  new  but  that  have  merit  in 
them.  Old  methods  surely  have  and  have  had  their 
merit  and  due  meed  of  praise  and  use.  The  fraternal 
*  system  of  to-day  has  evoluted  through  many  phases  since 


State  Deputies. 


3.  Charles  L.  Ward,  Ellendale,  N.  D. 

4.  Joseph  B.  Thoburn,  Peabody,  Kas. 


1.  William  A.  Rodenberg,  East  St.  Louis,  111. 

2.  F.  R.  Van  Slyke,  Madison,  S.  D. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


161 


its  inception  to  the  plane  it  occupies,  and  consequently 
the  modus  operandi  must  evolute  in  like  ratio.  Putting 
the  question  plainly  and  squarely  without  a  quibble,  why 
do  people  join  fraternities  nowadays  ?  The  answer  comes 
back  forcefully  —  ''for  the  insurance  and  protection." 
In  its  incipiency  the  unselfish  fraternal  idea  may  have 
animated  and  prompted  most  applicants  ;  to-day  it  is  for 
a  business  reason.  And  can  the  membership  be  charged 
with  mercenary  motives  for  this  ?  Hardly.  The  orders 
now  solicit  through  paid  deputies  members  upon  this 
basis,  and  hence  they  must  cope  with  the  monopolistic 
concerns  to  furnish  at  a  better  rate  what  they  promise. 

In  the  last  issue  of  the  Monitor  a  contributor  of  national 
reputation  inveighed  against  fraternal  orders  accumulat- 
ing a  reserve  fund,  contending  that  true  fraternity  was 
not  based  on  business  principles  of  that  sort,  but  was  a 
loving  Charitas,  and  as  such  a  mercenary  proceeding 
such  as  creating  this  sum  would  be  odious  and  distasteful. 
Already  a  number  of  intelligent  writers  of  all  shades 
have  taken  issue  with  him  on  this,  and  shown  him  that 
he  was  certainly  befogged  in  his  ideas  of  the  scope  of  the 
fraternity  of  io-daj.  The  need  of  this  modern  concomi- 
tant of  insurance  is  beginning  to  be  seriously  felt  by  the 
older  class  of  orders.  These  orders  when  begun  were 
hardly  constructed  scientifically,  but  based  on  the  broad 
principles  of  humanity.  To-day  they  are  opening  their 
eyes  to  a  dwindling  membership  and  increased  assess- 
nients.  In  illustration  we  will  cite  the  Ancient  Order  of 
United  Workmen.  This  is  one  of  the  oldest  post  mortem 
organizations  in  the  country.  Like  most  others  organized 
at  the  time  it  made  no  limitation  provision  as  to  the 
number  of  assessments  per  year,  but  as  its  membership 
was  then  in  the  prime  of  manhood  and  the  death  rate 
correspondingly  low,  this  was  either  not  considered  at  all 
or  only  given  cursory  thought.  Now  that  the  organiza- 
tion has  passed  through  a  number  of  decades  it  has  ac- 

11 


162 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


cumulated  a  vast  experience.  Instead  of  resorting  to  an 
absolute  reserve  fund  it  has  taken  recourse  to  a  system  of 
relief  fund.  Every  grand  jurisdiction  is  limited  to  a 
stated  number  of  assessments  per  year,  graded,  apparently, 
upon  the  average  age  of  the  membership  as  well  as  the 
general  salubrity  of  the  local  climate.  Should  the  num- 
ber of  deaths  in  any  one  year  exceed  the  stipulated 
number  for  the  jurisdiction,  then  the  Supreme  Body  pays 
the  same  from  its  relief  fund.  This  system  has  not 
worked  to  the  eminent  satisfaction  of  the  membership, 
and  at  the  last  gathering  of  the  Supreme  Body  it  was 
modified  with  the  hope  that  it  would  amply  meet  all  re- 
quirements and  expectations.  The  upshot  of  the  whole 
matter  with  this  grand  organization,  as  well  as  others  con- 
structed on  varying  lines,  is  that  a  permanent  reserve  will 
have  to  be  created.  If  this  is  not  done  then  fraternities 
will  ere  long  be  divided  into  those  of  the  young  and  those 
of  the  old.  Instead  of  each  paying  its  protection  equitably, 
as  the  purport  is,  the  younger  element  will  be  compelled 
to  carry  in  addition  to  its  own  load  a  fair  portion  of  the 
older,  too  —  which  is  inequitable  and  fraught  with  dis- 
aster in  the  long  run.  Once  more,  imbibe  new  ideas, 
brethren  !  Take  example  from  the  enemy,  and  the  light 
of  true  fraternity  will  ever  continue  to  shine  as  a  beacon 
for  those  seeking  safety  in  thy  harbor. — Exchange. 


Views  of  Dr.  Bemis. 


The  monthly  meeting  of  the  University  Historical  and 
Political  Science  association  was  held  at  the  university 
law  building  last  evening.  Dr.  E.  W.  Bemis,  of  the 
University  of  Chicago,  lectured  before  the  association  on 
the  subject  of  assessment  life  insurance.    The  lecturer 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Booh. 


163 


traced  the  history  of  business  assessment  companies,  of 
fraternal  insurance  companies  which  have  no  lodges,  and 
of  those  which  have.  He  showed  how  they  start  usually 
with  a  very  low  death  rate  of  perhaps  six  or  eight  out  of 
every  thousand  members,  and  found  that  the  rate  in- 
creased gradually  to  twelve,  and  even  in  a  few  cases  to 
sixteen  in  every  thousand.  Even  then  the  cost  is  less 
than  in  old-line  companies,  and  no  fraternal  insurance 
association  of  national  character  and  based  on  lodge 
features  was  ever  known  to  fail.  But  the  danger  is  that  new 
assessment  companies  constantly  starting  with  less  mor- 
tality may  attract  the  healthier  and  younger  members  of 
the  older  companies,  thus  involving  them  in  abnormally 
high  and  fatal  cost  from  high  death  rate.  But  it  was 
shown  how  some  of  the  best  assessment  companies  are 
trying  to  guard  against  this  with  fair  prospects  of  success 
by  grading  assessments  more  scientifically,  according  to 
the  age  at  which  new  members  will  be  admitted.  The 
€Ost  of  management  in  fraternal,  or  even  in  business 
assessment  companies  is  necessarily  less  than  in  old-line 
companies,  which  have  to  guard  an  enormous  invested 
fund.  The  assessment  system  of  insurance  is  especially 
healthful  to  those  who  only  desire  insurance  from  about 
the  age  of  thirty  to  that  of  fifty-five,  and  are  willing  to  in- 
vest in  a  good  building  and  loan  association  or  otherwise 
from  year  to  year  the  diff'erence  between  the  expense  of 
an  old-line  policy  and  that  of  a  business  assessment  com- 
pany. Such  a  person  could  afford  at  the  age  of  fifty-five, 
if  alive,  to  drop  all  insurance  and  yet  be  better  off"  in 
most  cases  than  one  insured  in  an  old-line  company. 
But  the  latter,  it  must  be  admitted,  provides  at  present  a 
more  secure  insurance  for  old  age  than  the  assessment 
companies.  The  old-line  companies  have  adopted  many 
improvements  through  competition  and  example  of  assess- 
ment companies.  Finally  ,  the  lecturer  held  that  no  state 
insurance  could  expect  to  be  cheaper  than  the  best 


164 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


assessment  insurance,  perhaps  not  quite  as  cheap  ;  but  it 
could  be  made  more  secure,  and  might  be  an  excellent 
thing  for  accidents,  at  least  in  our  factories  and  workshops, 
but  with  some  provision  for  the  wage-workers  as  well  as 
the  employers,  and  the  state  to  bear  a  considerable  share 
of  the  expense.  State  regulation  and  strict  enforcement 
of  wise  laws,  of  which  Massachusetts  furnishes  the  best 
example,  should  be  had  in  matters  of  insurance  of  all 
kinds  in  every  state  of  the  union. —  Madison  (Wis.) 
Democrat. 


Reserve  Funds  and  their  Investment, 


Among  the  questions  which  come  up  for  solution  at  the 
hands  of  those  having  in  charge  the  conduct  of  fraternal 
organizations  —  and  there  is  quite  a  number  of  them  — 
there  is  none  which  requires  more  careful  and  painstak- 
ing consideration  than  the  handling  of  the  reserve  fund. 
Indeed,  this  is  supposed  to  be  the  keynote  of  the  whole 
situation,  the  success  of  an  organization  and  its  valid 
claims  to  public  consideration  being  weakened  or 
strengthened  in  proportion  to  its  ability  to  refer  to  it  and 
its  accumulating  power  as  the  nucleus  of  a  fund  to  be 
used  at  stated  intervals  to  assist  in  taking  care  of  the 
maturing  obligations  due  those  who  have  persisted  and 
remained  faithful  during  the  allotted  time. 

The  fraternal  system  of  co-operation,  as  operated  to- 
day, is  in  the  nature  of  a  revolt  against  the  old-line  sys- 
tem of  furnishing  benefits  at  a  given  time  or  at  death. 
It  is  a  rebuke  to  the  excessive  charges  of  the  latter,  both 
as  regards  the  conduct  of  its  business  and  the  benefits  it 
affords.  There  is  danger,  therefore,  unless  certain  car- 
dinal principles  are  kept  ever  in  view,  that  in  endeavor- 
ing to  avoid  the  Scylla  of  old-line  extortion  the  fraternal 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


165 


system  may  run  afoul  the  Charybdis  of  "  something  for 
nothing."  •  Both  of  these  extremes  are  to  be  avoided. 
The  co-operative  dollar  has  no  greater  paying  capacity 
than  has  that  of  any  other  system.  It,  however,  is  on  a 
parity  with  anything  else  —  a  fact  which  some  of  the  op- 
ponents of  co-operation  apparently  view  with  suspicion. 
The  vital  element  of  dissimilarity  between  the  two  sys- 
tems is  this  :  The  old-line  system  creates  two  funds 
where  only  one  is  necessary.  Its  one  element  embodied 
in  computing  its  schedule  of  rates  meets  its  current  lia- 
bility as  it  ensues.  The  other  element,  known  as  a  legal 
reserve,  comprises  a  fund  which  improved  at  a  very  low 
rate  of  interest  reaches  the  maximum  of  the  polic}^  obli- 
gation at  the  age  of  ninety-six  years.  It  is  a  manifest 
absurdity  to  provide  for  two  contingencies  when  only  one 
can  occur.  The  member  is  bound  to  die  eventually. 
This  mortality  element  takes  care  of  this  contingency,  no 
matter  whether  it  occurs  before  or  after  the  time  set  down 
by  the  tables  of  life  expectancy.  The  reserve,  therefore, 
is  an  element  which  must  always  be  kept  intact.  If  it  is 
encroached  upon  the  company  is  insolvent,  and  instead 
of  being  a  source  of  strength  it  is  an  element  of  weakness. 
The  fact  that  lapses  occur  cuts  no  figure  in  computing 
the  cost.  On  the  contrary,  the  fraternal  system  of  co- 
operation eschews  this  element  of  reserve.  For  its  cer- 
tificates which  mature  at  a  given  time  it  lays  aside  a  fixed 
amount  from  each  payment  to  equalize  the  cost  in  after 
years  and  to  create  the  nucleus  referred  to  above.  It, 
however,  is  in  no  sense  a  legal  reserve  as  held  by  the  old- 
line  companies,  and  the  difference  between  these  two  ele- 
ments constitutes  one  of  the  elements  of  saving  in  favor 
of  the  fraternal  system.  Another  item  which  cuts  no 
small  figure  in  reducing  the  cost  to  members  is  that  of 
expense.  An  old-line  company  uses  twenty-five  per  cent 
of  its  receipts  for  expenses  ;  thirty-five  per  cent  for  mor- 
tuary losses,  and  forty  per  cent  for  reserve.    It  thus  will 


166  The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


be  seen  that  seventy  per  cent  of*  the  amount  required  to 
meet  obligations  is  consumed  in  expenses  — ^  a  ratio  which 
can  hardly  be  said  to  inure  to  the  profit  of  the  member. 

The  next  question  to  be  considered  is  that  of  reserve. 
The  vast  unnecessary  accumulations  required  under  the 
old-line  system  render  the  proper  investment  of  these  a 
matter  of  great  moment  and  solicitude  to  those  operating 
under  it.  The  fact  that  this  is  only  computed  on  a  four 
per  cent  basis  shows  that  it  is  unwieldy  ;  the  further  fact 
that  the  major  portion  of  this  reserve  is  invested  in  un- 
productive securities  or  stocks  subject  to  the  manipula- 
tion of  those  who  can  see  nothing  wrong  in  inflating  or 
depreciating  them  to  meet  their  wishes  is  also  a  serious 
menace  to  their  security.  These  considerations  com- 
bined, a  four  per  cent  rate  of  profit  and  a  twenty-five  per 
cent  expense  rate,  show  that  this  reserve  is  not  very  pro- 
lific in  furnishing  an  increase  to  those  whose  money  is 
invested. 

We  will  now  refer  to  the  reserves  lieldby  the  fraternal 
societies.  These,  of  course,  are  small  in  comparison  with 
old-line  reserves,  and  yet  it  behooves  the  organizations 
possessing  them  to  make  them  as  productive  as  possible. 
In  the  handling  of  this  fund  the  following  considerations 
should  be  observed  :  The  keeping  intact  of  this  fund 
until  required  for  the  purposes  for  which  it  was  created  ; 
the  placing  of  safeguards  around  it  ;  the  methods  to  be 
employed  to  cause  it  to  produce  the  maximum  ratio  of 
gain  at  the  minimum  liability  of  loss,  and  the  placing  of 
it  where  it  can  be  gotten  at  when  needed  without  the 
hazard  of  loss  in  consequence  of  an  urgent  realization 
on  it. 

In  looking  over  the  plans  of  the  orders  we  find  that 
some  of  them  have  treated  this  subject  in  a  manner  which 
indicates  that  those  having  their  affairs  in  charge  desire 
to  avoid  all  the  responsibility  possible  as  to  their  invest- 
ment.   They  either  have  investing  committees  whose 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


167 


opinions  are  absolute  in  this  matter,  or  the}^  delegate  their 
powers  to  some  trust  company  which  pays  them  a  small 
ratio  of  profit,  and  carries  the  balance  over  to  the  profit 
side  of  its  own  account.  This  may  be  the  proper  way  to 
view  the  matter,  and  again  it  may  not  be.  AVe  are  in- 
clined to  believe  that  it  is  not.  We  will  concede  that  it  is  a 
great  relief  as  to  responsibility,  and  that  those  so  doing 
are  only  actuated  by  the  idea  of  insuring  the  absolute 
safety  of  the  funds  entrusted  to  them.  There,  however, 
is  another  point  of  view.  The  supreme  lodge  of  an  or- 
ganization in  handling  matters  entrusted  to  it  has  an 
important  duty  to  perform.  It  has  assumed  the  responsi- 
bility of  handling  its  affairs  in  all  their  details  in  a  man- 
ner which  it  believes  will  best  subserve  the  interests  of 
the  membership.  Therefore  when  it  delegates  to  other 
institutions  the  care  of  its  investments  it  to  a  certain  ex- 
tent curtails  its  own  prerogatives,  and  while  there  may 
be  a  fancied  avoidance  of  responsibility,  there  is  really 
none  should  loss  ensue  by  reason  of  its  having  placed  in 
the  hands  of  others  the  duties  which  properly  devolved 
upon  it.  AVe  will  agree  that  the  handling  of  reserve 
funds  is  a  great  responsibility,  and  that  only  orthodox 
business  methods  should  obtain  in  fulfilling  it. —  Selected. 


The  Natural  Premium  as  Applied  to 
Fraternal  Insurance, 


The  subject  I  nave  selected  for  this  paper  is  as  old  as 
is  insurance  upon  lives. 

Of  the  natural  premium  I  can  tell  you  nothing  new,  or 
anything  you  do  not  already  know,  but  I  trust  I  may,  in 
applying  it  to  our  work  as  developed  from  year  to  year, 


168 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


present  it  in  such  a  manner  that  it  may  not  be  entirely 
devoid  of  interest,  and  possibly  may  have  some  value. 
If  you  shall  agree  with  me  that  our  work  is  mutual  as- 
surance on  human  lives,  then  my  point  of  departure  is 
at  once  determined.  If  you  do  not  admit  the  premise,  I 
must  establish  it,  and  therefore  a  few  words  in  answer  to 
any  possible  denial  that  we  do  an  insurance  business. 
Every  order  here  promises  protection  to  tlie  family  of  a 
deceased  brother,  and  that  protection  is  the  payment  of 
a  sum  of  money.  We  fix  the  amount ;  we  assert  that  the 
payment  is  certain  if  the  obligations  are  kept.  In  "  fact," 
we  agree  to  make  certain  the  protection,  and  in  'Maw" 
covenant,  and  are  bound  by  the  law  to  pay,  a  specified 
sum  at  death.  We  "assure,"  we  'Mnake  certain,"  and  no 
insurance  company  of  any  kind  does  more  or  less  than 
this  ;  therefore,  to  all  intents  and  purposes,  our  business 
is  mutual  assurance  on  the  assessment  plan,  and  any 
fundamental  law  or  principle  that  underlies  and  governs 
insurance  on  lives  certainly  applies  to  us. 

As  far  as  the  law  of  mortality  extends,  so  far  at  least 
we  are  in  the  same  boat  with  our  friends  —  the  enemy," 
otherwise  known  as  old-line  companies.  We  criticise 
them,  and  deservedly  so  ;  but  do  we  always  draw  the  line 
where  criticism  is  no  longer  legitimate  ;  the  work  they 
do  is  admirable  ;  the  way  they  do  it  is  our  cause  of  quar- 
rel. 

From  their  experience  we  may,  if  we  will,  derive  most 
valuable  information,  and  as  it  lies  ready  to  our  hand  I 
submit  it  should  be  utilized  b};^  every  fraternal  order. 
Then  should  we  better  know  ourselves,  could  clearer  read 
our  future,  and  knowing  in  great  part  what  must  come, 
could  lay  our  plans  to  meet  it  with  greater  skill. 

The  natural  cost  of  $1,000  insurance  for  each  year  of 
life  is  a  readily-computed  sum,  and  from  the  mortality 
tables  we  find  it  for  the  several  ages,  and  this  cost  is  the 
natural  premium  on  well-selected  lives. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


169 


So  far  the  old  and  the  new  run  in  common  lines,  but 
right  here  in  practice  begins  a  wide  divergence.  None 
of  the  fraternal  orders  collect  the  natural  cost  of  the  in- 
surance, or  anything  to  provide  for  tlie  future  by  equaliz- 
ing, or  rather  by  distributing,  the  burden  between  the 
earlier  and  the  later  years  of  each  particular  life.  On 
the  contrary,  the  old-line  companies  do  collect  in  full, 
and  add  an  amount  to  be  credited  to  the  reserve  of  each 
particular  policy,  thereby  making  each  member  a  co- 
insurer  on  his  own  life  to  the  amount  of  the  reserve,  and 
then  pile  on  a  loading  for  expenses  and  contingencies. 
We  confine  ourselves  to  the  natural  premiums.  They 
adopt  the  level  premium. 

In  the  wide  departure  from  their  plan  lies  the  secret  of 
our  success  thus  far  in  giving  maximum  insurance  at 
minimum  cost,  and  that  success  is  the  more  remarkable 
that  it  has  been  secured  in  direct  violation  of  all  rules  of 
precedent. 

We  have  therefore  collected  what  money  we  needed, 
and  disregarded  in  great  part  the  law  of  mortality,  and 
year  by  year  our  assessments  have  become  more  frequent, 
until  now  the  natural  premium  may  profitably  and  un- 
derstandingly  be  applied  as  a  test  of  our  true  condition.— 
J.  E.  Shepard. 


Increase  the  Assessments. 


The  Monitor  would  belie  its  name  and  avowed  policy 
were  it  not  to  call  attention  to  the  errors  which  it  believes 
obtain  in  the  system  of  ante-mortem  benefits.  One  of 
these  lies  in  the  fact  that  not  a  few  of  the  orders  rely  too 
much  upon  increase  of  membership.  They  do  not  assess 
enough  and  they  thus  throw  themselves  open  to  the 
gravest  charge  which  can  be  made  against  them.  It  is 
only  a  matter  of  justice  that  every  member  who  is  a 


170 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


beneficiary  shonld  pay  the  exact  cost  of  what  he  receives. 
Funds  not  required  for  immediate  use  should  be  invested 
securely  and  at  the  highest  rate  of  interest  consistent 
with  safet3^  This  w^ill  afford  a  means  of  reducing  the 
burden  of  assessments  and  will  not  throw  the  fraternities 
open  to  the  accusation  of  "  robbing  Peter  to  pay  Paul." 

The  Monitor  was  discussing  the  system  with  an  old-line 
insurance  official  recently,  and  he  admitted  that  it  could 
pay  its  benefits  indefinitely  provided  it  charged  at  the 
rate  of  about  $500  during  a  period  of  seven  years  for  each 
$1,000  benefit  stipulated.  This  is  nearer  the  actual  cost 
than  is  the  rate  of  assessment  now  in  vogue  in  certain 
quarters.  No  one  offers  the  objection  that  the  return  to 
persistent  members  is  not  adequate  for  the  investment. 
The  difficulty  is  to  convince  people  how  such,  returns  can 
be  attained,  and  this  being  the  case,  it  is  a  short-sighted 
policy  for  an  organization  to  stand  in  its  own  light  when 
greater  results  could  be  had  on  a  basis  that  will  equalize 
the  burden  among  the  entire  membership. 

The  number  of  assessments  should  be  regulated  by  the 
approximated  amount  necessary  to  meet  obligations  after 
the  maturing  period  shall  have  been  reached.  It  is 
an  error  to  presume  that  there  is  time  for  this  when  the 
maturities  begin.  The  earlier  years  is  the  time  in  which 
to  create  a  snug  reserve  with  which  to  reduce  the  cost  in 
later  years.  The  first  members  should  not  receive  bene- 
fits at  a  nominal  cost,  leaving  those  who  come  in  later  to 
pay  more.  Each  year's  business  creates  its  own  liabili- 
ties, and  each  year  should  place  in  reserve  its  equity  of 
the  cost  when  such  liabilities  mature.  The  mortuary  so- 
cieties made  a  similar  mistake  in  the  earlier  years  of 
their  existence,  and,  while  such  a  course  has  not  been 
fatal,  it  has  served  the  purpose  of  increasing  the  cost  of 
the  protection  they  afford. 

Now  is  the  time  when  the  fraternities  should  make  pro- 
vision for  the  future.    Nor,  in  doing  so,  would  they  add 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


171 


any  undue  burden  to  their  membership.  Indeed,  we  be- 
lieve there. would  be  far  more  confidence  created  were  this 
to  obtain.  The  members  would  have  no  occasion  to  fear 
for  later  years.  They  would  be  assured  that  these  were 
taken  care  of.  They  would  go  in  for  legitimate  results 
from  legitimate  methods. 

Besides,  th^  enemy  would  be  shorn  of  its  power  to  suc- 
cessfully combat  fraternalism.  Law-makers  would  look 
upon  it  with  more  favor.  The  system  would  be  elevated 
to  a  higher  plane,  and  would  commend  itself  more  gen- 
erally to  a  better  class  of  people.  This  matter  lies  with 
the  fraternities  themselves,  and  we  trust  they  will  look  at 
it  squarely  and  honestly. —  Fraternal  Monitor. 


That  Reserve  Fund  Again. 


Beloit,  Wis.,  June  27th,  1892. 

Editor  Modern  Woodman : 

Esteemed  Neighbor  :  The  writer  notes  with  interest 
the  article  by  Neighbor  F.  AV.  Stevens,  on  the  question 
of  Reserve  Fund."  It  is  a  timely  and  interesting 
article.  In  the  opinion  of  the  writer,  the  subject  is  one 
to  call  forth  the  best  thought  of  the  intelligent  and  think- 
ing memberr^  of  our  order. 

Neighbor  Stevens  claims  he  is  getting  full  value  every 
time  he  pays  an  assessment,"  and  we  doubt  if  there  is  a 
member  of  the  order  that  will  disagree  with  him.  Neigh- 
bor S.  recommends  the  member  who  is  seeking  a  reserve 
fund  to  lay  up  something  for  a  rainy  day,  and  thereby 
establish  his  own  reserve  fund."  This  advice  is  good, 
and  we  doubt  not  every  man  who  reads  the  article  will 
say,  amen.  Every  man  ought  to  lay  up  against  a  rainy 
day." 


172 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


Says  Neighbor  S.  :  A  large  reserve  fund  in  societies 
serves  only  as  a  bone  of  contention."  The  writer  of  this 
article  would  be  extremely  sorry  to  see  any  element  in- 
jected into  the  order  that  would  be  the  cause  of  a  bone 
of  contention."  Under  proper  restrictions,  however,  the 
Modern  Woodmen  of  America  reserve  fund  could  never 
become  a  bone  of  contention,  nor  could  there  ever  be  any 
cause  of  dispute  how  it  should  be  expended  or  invested. 
Our  idea  would  be  to  have  the  reserve  fund  invested  in 
government  bonds,  the  interest  of  which  only  should  be 
used,  except  in  cases  of  extraordinary  emergenc}^  when 
it  might  become  necessary  to  use  it  for  the  purpose  for 
which  it  was  created,  i.  e.,  the  payment  of  death  claims. 

Now,  the  average  Woodman  when  he  enters  our  order 
has  a  certain  expectancy  of  life- — it  may  be  ten,  twenty, 
thirty,  or  even  forty  years.  The  great  mass  of  the  mem- 
bers have  joined,  why  ?  because  it  has  been  represented 
that  they  can  get  cheap  insurance.  In  entering  a  fraternal 
insurance  order  one  should  look  to  the  future,  when  we 
who  are  in  the  prime  of  life  to-day  are  on  the  down-hill 
side  of  life.  What  does  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America 
promise  for  the  future  ?  Neighbor  Stevens  may  say,  as 
some  of  my  own  near  Neighbors  have  said,  let  the 
morrow  care  for  itself ;  give  me  cheap  insurance  to-day 
and  I  will  run  my  risk  of  the  m.orrow."  This  may  be 
and  possibly  is  good  fraternal  insurance,  but  is  it  good 
logic  ? 

Under  our  present  system  a  man  who  joins  our  order 
and  dies  within  one  or  five  years  gets  very  cheap  insur- 
ance, and  we  who  live  out  our  expectancy  must  pay  a 
proportionate  increase  as  the  years  roll  by  to  provide  for 
these  early  deaths.  This  feature  is  not  as  yet  excessively 
objectionable,  but  the  ratio  will  increase  yearly,  and  it  is 
the  reserve  fund  that  must  come  in  play  to  protect  the 
long-lived  members,  by  making  a  provision  by  which 
those  members  who  die  early  will  leave  a  proportionate 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh.  173 


share  of  assessments  which  will  go  into  this  reserve  fund 
and  thus  -lessen  the  assessment  on  those  who  enjoy  a 
"  long  and  prosperous  life." 

What  is  needed  is  not  cheap  insurance  "  to-day,  but 
w^hat  will  continue  to  be  cheap  insurance  long  after  you 
and  the  writer  have  gone  to  join  the  silent  majority. 
Neighbor  Stevens  hits  the  nail  square  on  the  head  when 
he  says  :  If  the  majority  of  the  members  in  a  society 
get  old,  the  death  rate  is  bound  to  increase."  It  is  just 
here  where  the  reserve  fund  comes  in  play.  Keep  your 
assessments  low  and  the  new  blood  will  continue  to  flow 
in  in  a  steady,  ever-increasing  stream.  Let  the  old 
age  "  assessment  get  in  its  perfect  work  and  the  effect  is 
soon  perceptible  in  the  young  blood,"  and  then,  alas  for 
you  and  I,  who  have  clung  to  our  fraternal  society 
through  good  and  evil  report  —  we  find  ourselves  in  the 
evening  of  life  perhaps  unable  to  meet  the  increase  in  the 
assessments,  or  perhaps  unwilling,  and  the  membership 
suffers  a  rapid  decline  and  the  assessments  go  up  the 
sliding-scale  in  the  same  proportion. 

Take  warning  from  other  societies,  and  provide  the 
Modern  Woodman  of  America  with  a  guarantee  against 
the  almost  certain  increase  in  the  death  ratio  to  the  cor- 
responding decrease  in  the  membership,  caused  by  in- 
creased assessments.  Keep  the  assessments  low  and  new 
members  will  continue  to  flock  to  our  standard. 

The  above  is  only  the  opinion  of  one  humble  member 
of  the  order,  who  is  desirous  of  seeing  the  order  of  Modern 
Woodman  of  America  continue  on  its  present  highway  of 
prosperity  for  a  century  to  come,  and  longer. 
Fraternally  yours, 

F.  F.  LiVERMORE, 

Beloit  Camp,  No.  S4.8. 


174  The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 

The  Reserve  Fund, 


MoLiNE,  III.,  August  21st,  1892. 
Editor  Modern  Woodman  : 

My  Dear  Sir  :  I  am  pleased  to  see  that  the  question 
of  a  "  Reserve  Fund  "  is  being  agitated,  and  heartily  side 
with  Neighbor  Livermore,  of  No.  348. 

I  am  fifty-six  years  of  age,  have  been  in  "  a  number 
of  assessment  companies  the  past  twenty  years  —  some 
of  which  have  ''gone  to  the  wall" — and  I  am  forced  to 
the  conclusion  that  it  is  as  much  the  duty  of  the  fra- 
ternal insurance  order  to  ''lay  by  something  for  a  rainy 
day  "  in  its  early,  vigorous,  and  prosperous  days  as  it  is 
the  duty  of  the  man  who  starts  out  in  life  in  vigor,  vim, 
and  hopefulness  to  carve  for  himself  a  fortune  and  posi- 
tion. 

What  are  the  results  of  a  failure  so  to  do  ? 

First,  with  the  man  :  He  engages  in  the  activities  of 
life  ;  he  may  be  successful  and  acquire  a  competency  ; 
the  chances  are  in  his  favor  for  fifteen  or  twenty  years. 
How  many  in  each  one  hundred  succeed  ?  Those  who 
do  are  all  right,  but  what  of  those  who  fail  ?  Age  creeps 
on  ;  each  year  it  is  more  difficult  for  them  to  earn  the 
comforts  of  life.  If  sickness  or  misfortune  overtake 
them,  they  become  a  charge  upon  their  relatives  or  com- 
munity. Here  is  where  a  reserve,  "  laid  by  for  a  rainy 
day,"  would  help  to  tide  over"  the  emergency  and  carry 
him  along  comfortably  the  balance  of  his  days. 

Secondly,  with  the  society  :  When  young  and  vigorous, 
and  in  its  days  of  prosperity,  we  all  rejoice  at  the  low 
cost  of  insurance  ;  how  easy  it  is  to  draw  in  new  mem- 
bers !  Such  low  rates  were  never  before  known,  and 
speedily  we  mount  up  to  thirty  thousand,  forty  thousand, 
sixty  thousand  members  !  Our  order  is  young,  we  have 
a  low  death  rate,  are  only  in  healthy  sections  —  now  is 


The  Woodman's  Hand- Book. 


175 


the  time  to  lay  a  little  by  for  a  rainy  day.  We'll  hardly 
miss  it.  By  and  by,  when  assessments  come  upon  us 
thicker  (and  they  surely  will),  we  can  occasionally  draw 
upon  our  reserve  and  "  ease  up  "  a  little,  and  all  will  go 
along  smoothly,  with  no  one  to  grumble  at  the  increasing 
assessments,  and  threaten  to  ''drop  out"  if  they  continue 
at  that  rate. 

Do  you  doubt  that  the  assessments  will  increase  as  the 
order  increases  in  age  ?  Let  me  warn  you  of  your  folly. 
I  am  a  member  of  a  similar  association  Avhich  has  not 
yet  celebrated  its  twentieth  anniversary.  When  I  united 
fourteen  years  ago  my  assessments  were  about  $18  per 
annum  ;  now  they  cost  me  $30  !  The  order  maintains  its 
numerical  strength,  too  ;  in  fact,  increases  a  little,  and 
numbers  over  one  hundred  thousand.  But  men  of 
twenty-five  who  Avent  into  it  at  the  start  are  now  over 
forty  years  old,  and  the  older  ones  are  fast  being 
gathered  home,"  while  the  new  ones  barely  keep  up  the 
average  membership.  If  this  society  had  made  a  few 
extra  assessments  for  a  ''  rainy  day  "  when  it  was  only 
costing  us  $18  per  annum,  it  would  to-da}^  have  a  reserve 
from  which  it  could  draw  sufficient  to  reduce  the  cost 
from  $30,  as  I  now  pay,  to  $25  or  $26,  and  there  would 
be  no  one  to  find  fault  at  the  cost  ;  for  when  we  can  ob- 
tain insurance  at  $9  to  $12  per  $1,000  at  the  age  of  thirty 
we  are  getting  a  good  thing,  and  ought  to  take  it.  Let 
us  have  a  reserve  fund  carefully  (sacredly)  invested,  not 
to  be  touched,  as  Neighbor  Livermore  says,  except  in 
^'  extraordinary  emergencies."  It  need  not  be  too  large  — 
can  accumulate  very  gradually,  and  will  ''not  be  felt"  as 
a  burden  to  be  paid  by  any  jSTeighbor,  only  something 
laid  by  to  which  all  will  be  entitled  to  a  due  proportion, 
and  it  will  be  a  stimulant  to  our  continuity  ;  we'll  have 
something  laid  up,  then,  for  our  future  benefit  if  we  re- 
main steadfast.  Fraternally  yours, 

G.  W.  Griffin. 


176 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


Reserve  Fund, 


In  an  intelligent  discussion  of  the  above  question  it 
will  be  essential  to  well  and  fully  understand  what  is 
meant  by  the  term  '^Reserve  Fund." 

The  term  in  its  application  to  life  insurance  represents 
different  conditions  when  applied  to  level  premium  or 
old-line  life  insurance  companies,  to  natural  premium  or 
co-operative  assessment  companies,  and  to  secret  fraternal 
mutual  benefit  organizations. 

In  the  former  we  mean  when  referring  to  reserve  fund 
that  portion  of  the  premium  paid  by  the  policy  holders 
which,  when  placed  at  four  and  one-half  per  cent  com- 
pound interest,  with  the  added  annual  payments  there- 
after required,  interest  compounded,  will  amount  to  the 
face  of  the  policy. 

The  insurance  premium  of  old-line  companies  may 
properly  be  divided  as  follows :  First,  the  amount 
actually  required  to  meet  the  death  losses  each  year  ; 
second,  the  amount  required  to  create  the  necessary  legal 
reserve,  and  third,  the  loading  for  expenses. 

The  death  rate  being  fixed  upon  the  basis  of  mortuary 
tables  of  expectancy,  the  required  reserve  becomes  a 
known  and  definite  factor  which  under  state  supervision 
guarantees  the  solvency  of  the  company,  and  secures  a 
policy  holder  in  the  fulfillment  of  the  agreement  of  the 
company. 

It  may  not  be  out  of  place  here  to  say  that  the  ratio 
of  actual  to  expected  deaths,  as  proven  by  the  experience 
of  life  insurance  companies,  is  only  eighty-eight  per  cent 
of  that  fixed  by  the  mortuary  tables.  This  excess, 
together  with  the  excess  interest  received  above  that 
legally  required  for  the  reserve,  together  with  extra  load- 
ing for  expenses  over  and  above  requirements,  forms  the 
large  and  profitable  accumulative  factors  of  the  old-line 
companies. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


177 


The  fact  that  old-line  companies  thus  have  a  fixed  pre- 
mium to  be  collected  uniformly  throughout  the  life  of 
the  polic}^  with  no  reserve  liability  upon  the  part  of  the 
insured  makes  the  necessity  for  a  reserve  fund  in  proper 
proportion  to  its  insured  liability  apparent  without  argu- 
ment. It  is  a  requirement  born  of  the  very  necessities  of 
its  existence. 

Natural  premium  or  co-operative  assessment  companies 
cannot  rightfully  be  said  to  have  a  reserve  fund  in  the 
signification  of  the  term  as  applied  to  the  old-line  com- 
panies. The  reserve  which  they  accumulate  should  more 
properly  be  called  an  emergency  fund  or  regulating  assess- 
ment fund.  Upon  this  subject  we  quote  from  recognized 
authorities  : 

''While  nominally  a  reserve,  it  is  the  cohesive  force  re- 
lied on  by  the  company  to  hold  its  membership  together, 
and  the  only  actual  use  that  may  be  made  of  it  by  a  suc- 
cessful company  will  be  to  reduce  future  charges.  In 
other  words,  the  policy  holder  pays  now  for  such  extra- 
ordinary or  unusual  death  losses  as  may  occur  in  his  com- 
pany in  the  future  which  would  not  be  covered  by  the 
rates  charged  under  the  table  used  by  the  company." 

Another  eminent  authority,  E.  B.  Harper,  says  upon 
this  point,  in  reviewing  the  history  of  assessment  co-opera- 
tive companies  : 

''  Another  important  result  is  the  general  conviction  of 
the  necessity  of  an  emergency  fund,  a  precise  knowledge 
of -the  functions  it  is  to  perform  in  the  economy  of  assess- 
ment insurance,  its  management  and  distribution.  Re- 
tiring members  have  been  conclusively  shown  to  be  of 
better  average  mortality  than  those  who  remain,  and  it  is 
but  just  that  they  should  contribute  from  their  interests 
in  some  forfeitable  fund  a  sum  equal  to  the  burden  thrown 
upon  the  remainder  by  their  voluntary  retirement.  In 
this  way  only  may  the  actual  mortality  of  the  association 
be  kept  always  within  the  standard,  and  the  last  man  be 

12 


178 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


guaranteed  the  payment  of  his  certificate  in  full  under 
any  contingency  which  can  arise.  Fortunately  this 
emergency  fund  need  not  be  large,  and  can  in  no  event  be 
properly  compared  to  the  enormous  reserve  required  by 
the  level  premium  system  for  an  entirely  different  pur- 
pose. Even  should  it  disappear  through  carelessness  or 
bad  investment,  unlike  the  other  or  investment  feature, 
it  may  be  easily  replaced  by  other  contributions,  and  it 
does  not  work  the  ruin  of  the  company,  as  it  is  simply  an 
emergency  fund,  and  not  a  savings  bank  deposit." 

I  have  thus  quoted  at  some  length  the  best  authorities, 
and  I  might  truthfully  say  it  is  the  united  expression  of 
the  large  majority  of  assessment  companies  as  represented 
in  the  National  Association  of  Mutual  Life  and  Accident 
Underwriters,  in  order  to  clearly  show,  if  possible,  the 
actual  necessity  that  exists  in  co-operative  assessment 
companies  for  an  emergency,  or  rather  reserve,  fund.  The 
argument  as  to  the  necessity  of  such  a  fund  seems  to  be  : 

First.  That  the  fact  of  the  insured  having  contributed 
to  a  fund  in  excess  of  the  present  necessities  of  the  com- 
pany, and  that  so  long  as  he  continues  to  meet  the  re- 
quirements necessary  to  his  continued  insurance  he  has 
an  interest  in  said  fund,  will  per  force  add  to  the  per- 
sistency of  membership  in  the  company. 

Second.  That  the  collection  of  this  excess  amount  ad- 
justs to  a  greater  or  less  degree  the  equities  that  should 
exist  between  persistent  members  and  those  who  withdraw. 

Referring  now  directly  to  the  question  proposed,  viz.: 
^'  Is  the  creation  of  a  reserve  fund  in  any  form  by  any  secret 
fraternal  organization  desirable  ?  "  I  would  say  that  a  re- 
serve fund,  such  as  is  provided  for  in  old-line  companies, 
needs  no  argument  to  prove  it  not  desirable,  it  being  di- 
rectly averse  to  the  fundamental  principles  of  our  organi- 
zations ;  that  an  emergency  fund  or  equalizing  assess- 
ment fund  similar  to  that  adopted  by  assessment  co-opera- 
tive companies  is  or  is  not  desirable,  is  not  so  clear. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


179 


The  argument  first  advanced  by  co-operative  companies 
in  support  of  a  reserve  fund  we  believe  to  have  force  when 
applied  to  their  class  of  organizations.  Their  member- 
ship is  isolated  and  apart,  each  individual  standing  alone, 
bound  to  the  organization  by  no  other  tie  than  that  of 
individual  interest  as  represented  by  the  monied  consid- 
erations involved.  The  membership  is  solicited  and 
obtained  entirely  through  paid  agents,  whose  interests 
are  measured  alone  by  the  fees  they  receive.  The  con- 
tinuance of  the  connection  depends  largely  upon  the 
favorable  showing  of  the  company  as  compared  with  its 
competitors. 

The  prospective  participation  in  the  future  in  an  ac- 
cumulated reserve,  by  reduction  of  assessments  or  other- 
wise, may  act  as  a  preventative  to  withdrawals  and 
increase  the  general  persistency  of  membership. 

Secret  fraternal  organizations  rest  upon  a  distinct  and 
far-removed  foundation  from  that  of  co-operative  com- 
panies. It  is  true  that  in  its  business  methods  co-opera- 
tive companies  follow  closely  in  our  footsteps,  but  in  no 
way  else  does  it  resemble  fraternal  societies. 

Through  our  lodge  system  and  the  obligations  and 
teachings  of  our  rituals  we  bind  our  organizations  closely 
together  in  bonds  of  fraternal  support,  aid,  and  sympath}^ 
We  build  upon  this  foundation,  and  more  and  more  each 
year  of  our  history  are  we  led  to  prize  the  wisdom  that 
first  devised  and  the  judgment  that  still  maintains  the 
superstructure  of  fraternity.  It  is  not  a  theoretical  ad- 
junct that  has  no  existence  in  fact,  but  a  living,  vital 
principle,  continually  exercising  its  beneficent  influence 
in  welding  stronger  and  stronger  the  links  of  the  chain 
that  binds  us  together  in  bonds  of  unselfish  helpfulness. 

We  contribute  our  dollars,  not  alone  superinduced  by 
the  contracted  view  of  our  own  advantage,  but  with  the 
broader  and  more  exalted  one  of  care  and  protection  to 
our  fellowman.  Born  and  nutured  in  this  spirit,  the  con- 


180  The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


tributioiis  we  are  called  upon  to  make  becomes  a  charity 
in  the  fullest  meaning  of  the  term.  It  appeals  to  the 
best  and  noblest  instincts  of  our  nature,  and  secures  our 
promptness  and  loyalty  to  discharge  every  financial  and 
other  duty  with  cheerfulness  and  fidelity.  In  this  lies 
the  secret  of  our  strength,  and  furnishes  the  cohesive 
power  of  a  fraternal  brotherhood.  Does  this  not  secure 
us  the  requisite  persistency  of  membership  sought  to  be 
maintained  by  co-operative  companies  by  a  monied  re- 
serve ?    It  most  certainly  does. 

The  second  argument  advanced  by  co-operative  com- 
panies in  support  of  a  reserve  fund,  viz.:  That  it  adjusts 
the  equities  that  should  exist  between  persistent  members 
and  those  who  withdraw,  we  believe  to  be  wrong  in  the 
premises  assumed.  I  do  not  believe  there  exists  in  equity 
either  in  a  co-operative  company  or  fraternal  association 
any  unpaid  debt  upon  the  part  of  the  member  who  with- 
draws with  all  assessed  liabilities  fully  discharged.  The 
protection  both  ofi'er  is  contingent  upon  the  discharge  of 
obligations  incurred  by  reason  of  the  current  death  losses. 

It  is  a  mutual  agreement  between  the  members  that 
each  will  pay  a  stipulated  rate  of  assessment  for  a  stipu- 
lated amount  of  protection  in  such  number  as  may  be 
required  to  produce  an  amount  sufficient  to  liquidate  the 
current  death  rate  with  such  other  equitably  fixed  amounts 
as  may  be  necessary  to  pay  the  current  expenses  of  con- 
ducting the  business.  What  obligation  can,  then,  in 
equity,  possibly  attach  to  one  who  withdraws,  who  while 
mutually  participating  in  the  benefits  has  fully  discharged 
his  just  proportion  of  the  burdens  incurred  ? 

A  reserve  or  emergency  fund,  to  accumulate  which  an 
added  per  centage  must  be  taxed  to  that  required  to  meet 
the  current  necessities,  would,  therefore,  be  directly  op- 
posed to  the  fundamental  principles  upon  which  this 
class  of  insurance  or  protection  is  based,  unless  not  only 
those  who  witlidraw  but  also  the  representatives  of  those 


Tkc  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


181 


who  died  were  entitled  to  receive  the  amount  they  had 
contributed  thereto. 

There  is  another  argument  advanced  by  co-operative 
companies  which  although  not  so  generally  published  is, 
to  my  mind,  a  more  powerful  incentive  in  leading  them  to 
accumulate  a  reserve  or  emergency  fund  than  those  here- 
tofore referred  to,  viz.:  The  reputation  of  stability  and 
solvency  such  an  accumulation  may  encourage  among 
the  general  public.  As  to  whether  this  may  be  a  neces- 
sity of  co-operative  companies  or  not,  I  will  not  now 
argue,  but  I  am  convinced  that  there  exists  no  such 
necessity  in  our  fraternal  societies.  So  long  as  fraternal 
societies  continue  to  discharge  their  obligations  in  the 
same  prompt,  just,  and  speedy  manner  which  they  have 
done  in  the  past,  I  am  satisfied  that  no  accumulation 
within  their  power  to  raise  would  in  any  degree  add  to 
the  confidence  either  to  the  membership  itself  or  the  gen- 
eral public. 

The  question  of  the  ability  of  well-conducted  fraternal 
beneficiary  societies  to  fully  meet  and  discharge  their 
obligations  in  the  future  with  the  same  promptness  and 
fidelity  they  have  done  in  the  past,  and  that  the  cost  of 
maintaining  protection  will  not  be  materially  advanced, 
seems  well  established  by  the  past  experience  of  insurance 
companies.  We  append  two  tables,  showing  yearly  ex- 
perience, which  we  think  will  be  of  interest  in  this  con- 
nection. 

Table  of  the  New  York  Life  Insurance  Company,  show- 
ing the  death  losses  to  each  $1,000  of  insurance  in  force 
for  forty-two  years,  from  1845  to  1886,  inclusive  : 


182 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


Year. 
1845 
1846.. 
1847.. 
1848. . 
1849.. 
1850.. 
1851 . . 
1852. . 
1853. . 
1854.. 
1855  . 


Year. 

Year. 

1856. . 

.  .  .  .15.5 

1867  , 

1  QK'y 

1 1  ti 

1  QftQ 

1858  , 

,  ,12.0 

1869. . 

1  OCft 

1  c  o 

1860 

.  .  .  .12.4 

1871  , 

1861 

.  ,  .10.3 

1872  , 

1862 

.   ,  7.5 

1873, . 

1863 , . 

.  .  ,  .11.2 

1874 

1864. 

....  9.1 

1875 

1865 

. . .  .10.8 

1876. . 

1866, , 

,  .  ,  .  7.9 

.  8.1 
.  8.5 
.  7.4 
.11.5 
,11.6 
.11.9 
.11.7 
.12,0 
,12.1 
,12.1 


Year. 
1877.. 
1878.. 
1879.. 
1880 . . 
1881.. 
1882.. 
1883.. 
1884. . 
1885.. 
1886.. 


.12.8 
,13.5 
,12.3 
.12.8 
,13.3 
11.4 
.11.4 
9.8 
,11.5 
,  9.1 


....  3.8 
....  4.1 
....  8.5 
....  9.5 
....  9.7 
.  ...16.5 
....10.3 
....11.9 
....16.9 
....13.2 
Average,  11.2 


Table  compiled  from  the  sworn  reports  to  the  Insur- 
ance Department  of  the  State  of  New  York  of  all  the 
level-premium  companies  doing  business  in  that  state  for 
thirty  years,  from  1859  to  1888,  inclusive,  showing  the 
average  death  loss  to  each  $1,000  of  insurance  : 


Death  Loss  to  Expense  to  Each 
Each  $1,000       $1,000  of  In- 
of  Insurance 
in  Force. 


Year. 

1859  $  9  02 


6  37 
6  94 
6  91 

6  73 
8  01 

7  29 


1860  

1861  

1862  

1863  

1864  

1865  

1866   6  19 

1867   7  18 

1868   6  48 

1869.   8  23 

1870   9  92 

1871   10  81 

1872   12  00 

1873   11  94 


surance in 
Force. 

$  3  70 

4  99 

5  57 

5  50 

6  49 

6  59 

7  48 

8  68 

8  46 

9  70 
9  74 
9  72 
9  02 
8  80 
8  42 


Grand  average  for 


Death  Loss  to 
Each  $1,000 
of  Insurance 
Year.  in  Force. 

1874  $11  40 

1875   13  00 

1876   12  20 

1877   12  47 

1878   13  59 

1879   14  01 

1880   14  53 

1881   14  65 

1882   13  73 

1883   13  99 

1884   13  30 

1885   13  95 

1886   13  15 

1887   13  22 

1888   13  19 

thirty  years   10  81 


Expense  to  Each 
$1,000  of  In- 
surance in 
Force. 

I  8  20 
7  48 

7  79 

8  79 
7  60 

7  57 

8  61 
8  53 
8  31 

8  98 

9  89 
9  40 
9  62 

10  20 
10  59 
8  14 


In  addition  to  the  above  tables,  we  are  assured  by  care- 
fully-compiled statistics  that  the  mortality  rate  in  British 
companies,  which  extends  over  much  longer  periods, 
prove  nearly  the  same  ratio  of  death  losses  to  each  $1,000 


The  Woodmaii's  Hand-Book. 


183 


of  insurance  in  force,  the  combined  average  being  twelve 
and  a  fraction  to  each  one  thousand.  The  various 
friendly  societies  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  represent- 
ing millions  of  members  and  long  years  of  experience, 
only  show  a  yearly  mortality  rate  of  12.7  to  the  thousand. 
The  secret  societies  of  this  country,  including  those  that 
are  purely  fraternal  as  well  as  those  which  have  the  added 
feature  of  a  stipulated  amount  of  benefit  to  be  paid  at 
the  death  of  a  member,  show  a  less  mortality  rate  on  the 
average  than  that  experienced  by  either  American  or 
British  life  companies,  or  the  friendly  societies,  their 
death  rate  not  exceeding  ten  to  a  thousand. 

A  consolidation  of  the  above  table  of  experience  of  the  . 
New  York  Life  shows  a  death  rate  per  thousand  as  fol- 
lows :  Two  years  of  sixteen,  two  years  of  fifteen,  eight 
years  of  twelve,  twenty-seven  years  of  eleven  and  under, 
ranging  from  three  upward.  It  will  be  noted  that  from 
1860  to  1886,  inclusive,  twenty-seven  consecutive  years, 
in  no  one  year  has  the  rate  exceeded  thirteen. 

The  foregoing  experience,  when  considered  in  connec- 
tion with  the  fact  that  fraternal  beneficiary  societies  have 
had  thus  far  a  less  mortality  rate  than  that  shown  to 
exist  in  life  companies,  seems  to  me  to  be  conclusive 
proof  that  in  no  one  year  are  we  likely  to  be  burdened 
beyond  our  ability  to  pay,  and  yet  retain  growth  and 
prosperity. 

In  all  fraternal  beneficial  societies  the  reserved  right  is 
held  to  assess  its  membership  without  restriction  to  pay 
its  current  death  rate. 

That  this  death  rate  will  never  reach  a  point  in  any 
one  year,  or  in  an  aggregation  of  years,  that  will,  en- 
danger the  life  or  prosperity  of  an}^  well-established  and 
well-managed  fraternal  beneficial  society,  we  think  fully 
established  by  past  experience. 

A  reserve  or  emergency  fund  would,  to  our  mind,  not 
onh^  be  an  element  of  inequality,  as  we  have  shown,  and 


184 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


therefore  contrary  to  the  principles  of  our  organization, 
but  would  entail  more  or  less  distrust  and  contention  en- 
gendered by  the  danger  of  mismanagement  and  fraud, 
far  more  hurtful  than  any  benefit  likely  to  be  obtained. 

M.  W.  Sackett. 


As  its  leading  article  this  issue  the  Monitor  submits  an 
address  delivered  before  the  National  Fraternal  Congress, 
held  at  Cincinnati  recently,  on  the  subject  of  reserves 
and  their  presence  in  the  context  of  mortuary  society 
work.  The  position  taken  by  the  writer  clearly  em- 
,phasizes  the  need  of  a  reserve,  and  as  heretofore  these 
societies  have  repudiated  the  idea  as  useless  and  a 
menace  to  their  existence,  it  is  thus  rendered  all  the 
more  conspicuous.  The  Monitor  has  always  contended 
that  fraternal  societies  have  no  immunity  against  the 
laws  of  average  or  the  mortality  tables.  In  the  endow- 
ment idea  it  has  repeatedly  called  attention  to  the  in- 
equity obtaining  by  reason  of  the  early  members  getting 
their  benefits  at  less  cost  than  those  coming  in  afterwards, 
through  the  non-accumulation  of  a  reserve.  In  a  mor- 
tuary plan  the  same  result  ensues  by  reason  of  an 
abnormally  low  cost  during  the  first  decade  and  after- 
wards an  increase  which  not  infrequently  causes  dissatis- 
faction among  members.  There  is  nothing  gained  b}^ 
any  system  pointing  to  this  defect  in  the  other.  The 
same  element  of  danger  exists  in  both,  and  it  behooves 
them  both  to  avoid  it  or  make  provision  for  it.  The 
endowment  orders,  we  are  pleased  to  state,  have  already 
made  this  provision,  and  as  a  result  are  in  much  better 
condition  than  their  mortuary  friends.  These,  no  doubt, 
will  begin  to  make  provision  against  this  danger  which 
is  already  beginning  to  loom  up  ominously,  and  the 
manner  in  which  they  face  it  will  largely  determine  the 
success  which  will  attend  their  efforts  in  the  future. 


Secretaries  of  State  Meetings,  M.  W.  of  A,  1894. 

1.  M.  A.  Thayer,  Sparta,  Wis.  5.  F.  S.  Johnson,  Spring  Valley,  111. 

2.  M.  R.  Carriek,  Lansing.  Mich.  6.  C.  C.  Calkins,  Lincoln,  Neb. 

3.  E.  E.  Murphy,  Leavenworth.  Kas.  7.  A.  H.  Hooper,  St.  Paul,  Minn. 

4.  Aug.  Smith,  Des  Moines,  Iowa.  8.  F.  R.  Hyde,  Sioux  Falls,  S.  D. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


185 


It  is  the  veriest  nonsense  to  claim  undue  advantages 
by  reason  of  the  fraternal  plan  of  furnishing  benefits. 
We  admit  and  advocate  that  this  system  possesses 
features  and  advantages  not  open  to  systems  which 
operate  differently.  There,  however,  is  a  limit  beyond 
which  no  fraternal  society  can  safely  go.  Excessive  calls 
on  members  are  calculated  to  chill  their  fraternal  ardor, 
no  matter  how  strong  it  may  have  been  at  the  outstart. 
It  is  I'ar  better  to  endeavor  to  approximate  a  normal  cost 
at  the  beginning  ;  to  charge  this  no  matter  what  the 
current  liability  may  be,  and  after  the  normal  rate  has 
been  reached  to  keep  the  ratio  proportionate  to  liabilities, 
crediting  back  the  surplus  to  members  or  refraining 
from  making  unnecessary  calls.  Unbridled  exponents  of 
fraternalism  have  claimed  too  much  for  it.  They  have 
done  it  more  harm  than  good.  They  have  endeavored  to 
distort  a  grand  principle  by  claiming  merits  not  within 
the  bounds  of  reason.  The  people,  as  a  rule,  are  much 
more  intelligent  than  some  suppose  them  to  be,  and  in 
the  long  run  a  plan  which  is  capable  of  solution,  which 
is  reasonable,  which  promises  benefits  at  actual  cost,  and 
not  less,  will  win.  The  high  ground  the  system  is  as- 
suming these  da3'-s  is  the  precursor  of  a  higher  field  of 
usefulness  and  a  wider  range  of  operations.  Let  those 
Avho  essay  to  direct  its  interests  understand  their  business 
thoroughly,  and  let  them  build  on  a  basis  which  has  a 
proper  regard  for  the  period  of  maturity. —  Fraternal 
Monitor. 


The  Reserve  Fund  Question. 


In  regard  to  that  "  reserve  fund,"  I  must  agree  with 
Neighbor  Livermore  in  his  article  in  the  July  Woodman. 
We  do  need  a  reserve  fund  ;  and  to  prove  that  we  do,  we 
need  only  to  look  at  the  history  of  mutual  benefit  as- 


186 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


sociations  organized  by  the  Odd  Fellows,  Masons,  and 
other  orders  which  have  failed  ;  also  look  at  the  death 
rate  of  the  Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen,  runninii 
from  thirteen  to  twenty-four  deaths  per  one  thousand,  in 
several  states.  The  record  of  co-operative  insurance 
companies  bears  out  the  assertion.  We  need  a  reserve 
fund  to  keep  down  our  expenses  as  we  get  older.  While 
we  are  young  is  the  time  to  lay  up  a  reserve  and  to 
establish  a  maximum  death  rate,  and  by  the  time  we  are 
old  enough  to  have  an  excess  we  can  have  a  reserve  fund 
to  fall  back  upon.  I  w^ould  suggest  that  a  per  capita  tax 
of,  say,  $1.00  per  year  be  levied  and  set  aside  to  meet  any 
emergency  or  increase  in  the  death  rate  above  ten  or 
twelve  per  thousand  per  year,  this  fund  to  be  invested  in 
first  mortgages  on  real  estate,  bearing  a  fair  rate  of  in- 
terest, and  deposited  with  the  state  department.  The 
interest  on  this  fund  would  soon  amount  to  enough  to 
keep  down  a  large  per  cent  of  our  increase  in  death  rate. 
Establish  an  emergency  fund  and  the  assessments  are 
sure  to  be  kept  low  ;  keep  the  assessments  low  and  you 
will  continue  for  all  time  to  come  to  get  new  blood  into 
the  Camps.  When  such  a  fund  is  established  we  will  be 
on  a  never-failing  plan  ;  we  will  have  something  to  base 
our  future  security  on  ;  will  have  taken  a  great  step  to- 
ward perpetuating  our  order  ;  will  have  accomplished 
something  worthy  of  perpetuity.  I  should  like  to  have 
this  matter  discussed  through  3^our  columns,  also  by  the 
local  Camps,  and  have  our  delegates  to  the  next  Head 
Camp  meeting  instructed  so  that  they  may  know  the  feel- 
ing in  their  several  districts  in  order  that  action  may  be 
had  on  the  matter  at  once.  I  am  willing  to  abide  by  the 
decision  of  the  majority.  While  our  assessments  are  low 
let  us  prepare  a  fund  that  will  assist  us  in  the  future, 
that  the  interest  accruing  therefrom  may  help  to  keep 
down  assessments.       Fraternally  yours, 

F.  A.  Chidkster, 

Aurora,  Neb. 


The  Woodmaii's  Hand-Book. 


187 


By  What  Means  Can  Assessment  Bene£cial 
Orders  be  Best  Perpetuated? 


The  perpetuation  of  assessment  beneficial  orders  in- 
volves a  problem  yet  to  be  solved,  and  hence  demands 
the  earnest  thought  of  this  Fraternal  Congress.  The 
gravity  of  this  question  is  increasing  in  rapidly  accelerat- 
ing ratio  from  year  to  year,  and  it  involves  points  of  such 
vital  interest  to  these  associations  that  their  considera- 
tion cannot  be  safely  delayed.  The  originators  of  our 
beneficial  orders,  while  making  excellent  provision,  as 
everybody  thought,  for  the  uncertain  future  of  their 
members,  had  their  minds  concentrated  upon  conditions 
then  present,  rather  than  upon  future  contingencies, 
and,  as  results  have  proved,  did  not  take  into  account  the 
uncertainty  of  that  gradual  increase  of  membership 
which  would  keep  their  average  age  at  a  safe  and  desir- 
able figure. 

In  other  words,  let  us  assume  that  the  average  age  of 
members  at  the  date  of  organization  was  thirty  years,  at 
which  the  annual  rate  of  mortality  is  found  to  be  eight 
in  the  thousand.  From  thirty  up  to  fifty  the  annual 
rate  of  mortality  is  sixteen,  and  the  number  of  assess- 
ments increased  by  one  hundred  per  cent. 

At  the  average  age  of  sixty  the  increase  is  to  thirty  in 
the  thousand,  at  sixty-five  to  forty-four,  and  so  on.  It 
is  the  part  of  wisdom  to  anticipate  and  prepare  for  the 
increase  in  expense  incident  to  this  increased  death  rate. 
But  how  ? 

One  remedy  presents  itself  for  favorable  consideration, 
and  that  is  the  sinking-fund  plan.  How  it  is  to  be 
created,  and  where  to  find  for  it  a  safe  repository,  are 
questions  for  fraternal  legislation,  but  the  fact  that  means 
must  be  adopted  for  its  creation  and  care,  and  made 
effective  as  early  as  possible,  is  strongly  emphasized  by 


188 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh, 


present  conditions.  Twenty-five  years  have  elapsed  since 
the  first  of  these  orders  began  its  effective  work.  Its 
origin  was  humble,  but  the  sentiment  that  had  animated 
its  founder  sprang  from  the  most  kindly  emotions  of  the 
human  heart.  Naturally  it  involved  more  of  kindness 
and  charity  than  sound  business  ability,  and  this  pre- 
ponderance of  liumanitarianism  was  at  the  expense  of 
financial  efficiency,  upon  which  the  ultimate  success  of 
the  entire  system  depends. 

I  have  in  my  mind's  eye  a  fairly  prosperous  order  with 
fourteen  thousand  active  members.  For  a  benefit  of 
$2,000  it  is  safe  to  assume  that  the  cost  averages  $24  per 
member  for  assessments  annually.  Ten  per  cent  of  the 
collections  on  this  basis  being  set  aside  for  a  sinking 
fund,  would  give  in  ten  years  $336,000,  not  counting  in- 
terest in  the  meantime  —  a  sum  sufficient  to  guard 
against  excessive  assessments  in  emergencies.  It  would 
also  bring  a  feeling  of  safety  which  many  in  our  bene- 
ficial orders  do  not  possess,  and  would  add  largely  to  our 
clientele.  Perhaps  it  might  be  better  still  if  the  prin- 
cipal were  allowed  to  accumulate,  not  for  ten  years,  but 
for  all  time,  and  use  the  interest  only  when  emergencies 
arise,  and  continue  to  add  to  the  principal  in  the  same 
way,  and  in  fift}'  years  the  annual  income  would  reach 
hundreds  of  thousands.  The  ten  per  cent  can  be  reduced 
from  time  to  time  as  the  conditions  may  warrant. 

You  may  say  that  this  is  a  long-distance  view  ahead. 
Yes  ;  but  if  the  originators  of  these  assessment  orders  had 
looked  ahead  only  half  as  far,  our  condition  would  be 
greatly  in  advance  of  what  it  is  to-day.  A  grand  work 
was  accomplished  in  the  organization  of  these  orders,  and 
their  promoters  exercised  remarkable  energy  and  judg- 
ment in  pushing  them  forward  to  public  recognition. 
They  introduced  popular  features  and  adapted  the  whole 
system  to  the  easy  comprehension  and  availability  of  the 
people,  and,  very  justly,  they  enjoyed  a  large  measure  of 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


189 


success.  After  such  service  rendered  to  humanity,  they 
may  be  readily  excused  for  omitting  to  provide  ways  and 
means  of  guarding  against  the  consequences  of  the  ad- 
vanced and  advancing  ages  of  their  constituencies,  the 
necessity  for  which  was  not  then  so  readily  or  keenly  felt 
as  now.  Can  we  found  a  better  monument  to  perpetuate 
their  good  deeds  than  to  make  ample  provision  for  the 
inevitable  now,  and  to  do  it  in  the  most  effective  way  ? 
Has  it  not  become  a  necessity  ? 

A  point  which  addresses  our  subject  with  a  great  deal 
of  force,  and  which  has  employed  the  best  thought  of  the 
medical  profession  in  our  ranks,  is  better  selection  in  the 
matter  of  membership.  Quantity  has  had  the  preference 
over  quality  with  those  who  were  entrusted  with  our  re- 
cruiting for  too  long  a  period.  In  this  statement  I  do  not 
seek  to  criticise  organizers,  or  members,  or  management, 
but  the  spirit  of  the  hour,  which  in  this  country  goes 
into  things  with  a  mad  rush,  soon  expends  its  force 
in  the  search  for  novelty,  and  failing  to  find  it  rushes 
out  again  just  as  madly.  Membership  in  a  fraternal 
order  is  as  much  a  matter  of  pure  business  in  its  finan- 
cial department  as  keeping  an  account  in  a  savings 
bank,  and  it  should  be  conducted  with  the  same  precision 
and  high  regard  for  system  and  perfect  accuracy  in  every 
detail.  The  official  management  should  be  as  clear-cut 
and  precise  as  that  of  the  best  financial  institution,  where 
every  scrap  of  security  for  any  proposed  undertaking  is 
scanned  with  the  severest  vigilance. 

Much  of  the  security  and  much  more  of  the  success  of 
an  assessment  order  is  found  in  its  young  blood  ;  in  the 
vigor  and  moral  stamina  of  its  membership  ;  that  stamp 
of  youth  which  promises  many  years  of  active  life  ;  that 
quality  of  vigor  which  conquers  the  obstacles  to  existence 
and  establishes  for  its  possessor  an  honorable  mainte- 
nance ;  and  that  moral  force  which  is  the  best  preserver 
of  these  attributes.  In  this  we  have  the  secret  of  the  early 


190 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Book. 


success  and  popularity  of  the  orders.  It  is  said  that  old 
men  are  wanted  for  counsel.  We  have  an  abundant 
supply.  But  young  men  are  wanted  for  active  effort,  and 
here  the  lack  is  becoming  quite  too  significant.  Staring 
us  in  the  face  is  the  fact  that  the  young  men,  who  were 
the  life  and  hope  of  the  orders  fifteen  or  twenty  years 
ago,  are  the  sedate  and  mature  counsellors  of  to-day,  and 
the  accession  of  young  blood  has  not  kept  sufficiently 
apace  with  the  tendency  to  grow  old  to  give  assurance  of 
future  prosperity,  if  not  of  safety. 

There  must  of  necessity  be  an  inflow  of  young  blood  in 
all  our  assessment  orders  sufficient  to  maintain  an 
average  minimum  age  of  the  membership,  and  provision 
made  for  guarding  the  young  against  an  undue  expense, 
or  the  orders  will  suffer  the  natural  consequences  —  a 
rapid  increase  in  the  death  rate,  carrying  with  it  an 
ominous  increase  in  the  cost  for  assessments.  When  the 
assessments  are  considered  high  recruiting  flags  and  ex- 
perienced organizers  find  it  difficult  to  secure  member- 
ship for  some  of  the  older  orders  ;  nor  do  they  find  it 
easy  to  get  them  for  any.  All  recall  the  time  when  only 
a  few  days  were  needed  to  get  enough  acceptable  names 
for  a  lodge.  An  organizer  in  the  west  averaged  a  lodge 
a  week  for  a  popular  order  for  a  year.  Then  the  appli- 
cants paid  from  five  to  ten  dollars  for  the  privilege  of 
joining  an  order.  How  is  it  now  ?  He  must  be  a  man 
with  special  gifts  and  experience  to  succeed  at  all,  and  is 
regarded  as  successful  when  he  organizes  a  lodge  in  from 
four  to  six  weeks.  While  some  of  the  stronger  orders 
still  adhere  to  the  rule  that  membership  is  something  of 
specific  value,  and  require  fees  of  from  $5  to  $10,  others 
are  willing  to  admit  them  at  a  nominal  charge,  usually 
enough  to  pay  the  medical  examiner  and  cost  of  certifi- 
cate. 

The  work  of  recruiting  generally  has  become  an  oner- 
ous expense,  because  of  the  labor  and  time  needed  to 


/ 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Boole.  191 

achieve  success.  Organizers  are  paid  from  $100  to  $150 
a  month  and  expenses,  when  they  receive  salaries  ;  or 
from  $4  to  $8  per  member  when  they  depend  npon  the 
result  of  their  labors  for  remuneration.  This  augurs  a 
gloomy  prospect  for  natural  growth  in  the  future.  The 
question  arises,  why  this  radical  change  in  conditions  in 
so  brief  a  period?  The  answer  is  not  so  much  in  the 
multiplicity  of  orders  as  in  the  growing  expense  for  assess- 
ments, and  the  consequent  chilling  of  that  enthusiasm 
which  must  be  a  factor  in  their  prosperity.  May  we  not 
assign  as  the  cause  of  this  fading  of  interest  on  the  part 
of  both  members  and  non-members  the  growing  expense 
and  growing  feeling  of  uncertainty  of  benefits  in  assess- 
ment orders  ?  If  this  is  true,  it  is  only  needed  to  see  a 
danger  to  avert  it,  and  I  trust  it  will  be  so  in  this  instance. 
I  am  certain  it  will. 

It  is  not  members  of  advanced  age  who  are  dangerously 
affected  by  an  increased  expense.  They  realize  that  the 
promised  indemnity  is  cheaper  to  them  at  the  increase 
than  the  same  amount  of  insurance  is  in  any  old-line 
company.  They  realize,  also,  that  if  there  is  no  recruit- 
ing it  must  be  only  a  matter  of  time  when  the  cost  will 
be  too  burdensome  to  carry,  and  consequently  the  orders 
will  collapse,  and  all  will  be  lost.  Younger  persons, 
however,  will  not  voluntarily  assume  liabilities  and  re- 
sponsibilities with  menacing  possibilities,  when  they  have 
an  understanding  of  the  situation,  if  it  is  not  made  clear 
that  they  will  have  the  benefit  of  their  longer  expectancy. 

Under  the  plan  of  grading  the  assessment  according  to 
age  of  the  applicant  at  the  time  he  joins  an  order,  I  hold 
that  there  should  be  an  increase  with  advancing  age  in 
■order  to  guard  against  taxing  young  men  for  old  risks. 
There  must  be  absolute  protection  against  an  uncertain 
and  growing  expense  to  induce  a  sufficient  inflow  of  young 
members  to  maintain  the  average  minimum  age.  If  that 
is  found  to  be  impracticable  the  cost  should  be  regulated 


192 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Book. 


by  an  emergency  fund.  The  larger  the  membership  the 
more  difficult  it  is  to  maintain  the  minimum  age.  An 
absolutely  fair  and  equitable  system  of  life  insurance  is 
that  in  which  a  member  starts  with  a  charge  commensu- 
rate with  his  estimated  longevity,  which  should  increase 
yearly  as  his  chances  diminish.  A  table  of  costs  for 
every  year — or,  if  preferred,  every  five  years'  period  — 
can  be  easily  made  up  from  the  actuaries'  tables  of  ex- 
perience. Under  such  a  rule  every  member  would  be  on 
an  equal  footing  as  far  as  assessments  are  concerned,  each 
paying  only  his  due  proportion  according  to  age. 

An  emergency  fund  would  enable  us  to  limit  the  num- 
ber of  assessments  in  providing  means  to  pay  an  excess 
of  death  claims  over  a  fixed  number  per  year. 

Again,  it  might  be  well  to  equalize  in  some  measure  the 
differences  that  are  so  frequently  seen  between  the  actual 
and  estimated  duration  of  life.  Say  a  member  who  dies 
within  a  year  from  his  admission  shall  be  entitled  to  only 
one-half  or  three-fourths  of  the  benefit,  the  proportion 
increasing  up  to,  say,  ten  years,  after  which  pay  the  full 
amount.  Perhaps,  too,  it  might  be  well  to  turn  over  the 
amounts  thus  scaled  from  the  benefit  to  the  credit  of  an 
emergency  fund.  Those  who  live  and  continue  to  pay 
into  the  treasury  of  an  order  are  entitled  to  some  consid- 
eration, and  something  like  the  plan  suggested  would,  it 
seems  to  me,  compensate  them  as  far  as  the  orders  can  in 
safety  do  so. 

We  may  say  to  the  man  of  twenty-five  to  thirty-five 
that  the  older  members,  who  joined  an  order  in  the  morn- 
ing of  life,  have  made  it ;  have  supported  it  and  built  it  up,, 
so  as  to  aff'ord  younger  men  of  later  days  the  splendid 
opportunity  it  ofi'ers  them  to  provide  for  their  dependents. 
But  the  reply  will  be  that  the  younger  men  do  not  deem 
it  necessary  to  go  into  an  old  order,  where  they  will  have 
to  assume  the  heavier  death  rate  due  to  a  membership 
advanced  in  years  ;  that  they  can  start  a  new  order  of 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


193 


their  own,  with  no  auch  weight  to  carry.  And  that,  I 
may  note  in  passing,  accounts  to  some  extent  for  the 
multiplicity  of  mutual  benefit  orders.  Until  the  older 
orders  adopt  some  practicable  means  for  regulating  the 
cost  of  membership  to  younger  members,  they  will  find  it 
more  difficult  each  year  to  secure  recruits  among  them  or 
hold  those  they  have. 

I  have,  too,  great  faith  in  the  cultivation  of  the  fraternal 
side  of  the  orders.  That  can  be  built  up  into  a  tower  of 
strength,  or,  to  change  the  metaphor,  it  can  be  made  one 
of  the  greatest  attractions  and  strongest  ties.  Other 
orders  without  the  benefit  department  illustrate  the  power 
of  fraternity  —  draw  men  together  and  bind  them  in^the 
bonds  of  brotherhood,  producing  a  constant  increase  in 
numbers  and  influence.  It  is  singular  that  the  benefit 
feature,  w^hich  ought  to  enhance  the  force  of  the  fraternal 
has  really  overshadowed  and  weakened  it,  but  we  all 
know  that  such  is  the  fact.  The  fraternal  spirit  in  the 
orders,  if  elevated  to  its  proper  place,  becomes  a  conspicu- 
ous attraction  to  the  young,  who  are  always  socially  in- 
clined, and  more  or  less  susceptible  to  the  sentimental 
view  of  life.  If  we  can  devise  any  way  to  arouse  this 
spirit  and  give  it  full  play  we  shall  have  secured  a  strong 
ally  in  our  efforts  to  perpetuate  our  orders.  We  must 
give  to  the  young  the  advantages  to  which  their  age  en- 
titles them  if  we  would  appeal  successfully  to  those  of 
them  who  are  intelligent  enough  to  be  desirable  members, 
and  enlist  them  in  the  work  of  recruiting  their  fellows. 
The  orders'  plan  and  system  of  operations  must  be  fair 
to  all  alike  —  burdensome  to  none  —  or  the  new  and 
younger  members  will  go  out  faster  than  they  are  taken 
in.  In  fact,  they  must  know  that  they  are  not  "taken 
in,"  in  the  sinister  sense  of  the  phrase,  else  their  admis- 
sion will  do  more  harm  than  good.  Hence  organizers 
should  be  cautioned  to  make  no  misrepresentations  ;  to 
explain  frankly  their  system  of  operations  ;  show  the 

33 


194 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh, 


reasons  for  and  the  advantages  of  every  feature  of  the 
cost  as  near  as  it  can  be  given,  and  appeal  to  the  intel- 
ligence and  sense  of  duty  of  those  whose  membership  is 
desired. 

Another  thought  occurs  :  It  is  that  the  mortality  of  a 
city  or  thrifty  community,  which  has  an  ordinary  and 
natural  growth,  averages  about  the  same  in  a  given  period 
of  years  —  is  the  same  now  as  twenty-five  or  fifty  years 
ago.  If  this  follows  without  an  effort,  the  question 
naturally  arises,  why  may  we  not,  by  an  effort,  secure 
like  results  in  the  orders  ?  So  we  could,  were  it  possible 
to  provide  for  a  similar  inflow  of  fresh  blood.  The  ac- 
cretions to  a  city  are  from  births  and  new-comers  —  a 
constant  moving  of  population,  which,  like  a  flowing- 
stream,  insures  a  healthful  condition.  In  the  orders  it 
must  be  remembered  that  nearly  one-half  the  expectancy 
of  life  —  and  that  the  best  half — has  been  spent  before 
one  is  admitted  to  membership.  Is  not  this  fact  sug- 
gestive of  the  advisability  of  lowering  the  minimum 
limit,  say  from  twenty-one  to  eighteen,  or  still  lower  ? 
Whenever  the  inflow  in  a  beneficial  order  is  as  free  and 
certain  as  that  in  a  thrifty  city,  no  danger  will  menace 
its  existence  because  of  its  older  members.  Until  this  is 
consummated,  however,  it  will  stand  us  in  hand  to  provide 
the  surest  and  most  practical  method  of  neutralizing  the 
diff'erences  wrought  b}^  time  on  our  memberships. 

Other  points  occur  to  me,  but  I  must  not  make  this  ar- 
ticle too  long.  The  suggestions  herein  given  are  the  re- 
sults of  some  reflection  and  long  experience,  and  are 
thrown  out  with  the  hope  that  the  matter  will  receive  the 
thoughtful  consideration  of  those  who  are  better  able 
than  myself  to  suggest  a  plan  to  avert  the  danger  I  have 
but  dimly  foreshadowed,  and  that  the  conclusions  will  be 
submitted  to  the  legislative  bodies  of  the  orders  here 
represented  for  action.  .      :  / 

•  T.  J.  Smith. 


The  Woodman'' s  Hand-Booh. 


195 


Average  Age, 


"  Will  not  the  death  rate  increase  as  an  order  grows 
older  ?  "  is  often  inquired.  Up  to  a  certain  maximum, 
yes.  And  that  maximum  is  the  average  age  of  forty 
years  for  its  members,  which  is  the  average  age  of  the 
members  of  all  fraternities  over  half  a  century  old.  But 
beyond  this  it  can  never  go  in  any  standard,  progress- 
ive society,  that  by  the  addition  of  what  is  termed  "  new 
blood  "  each  year  fills  up  the  gap  from  loss  and  presents 
even  a  slight  increase  at  the  end  of  each  year.  In  such 
an  one  the  average  age  will  be  forty,  and  the  death  rate 
one  per  cent,  ad  infinitum.  And  here  let  us  say  that  new 
blood  is  not  meant  to  be  young  blood,  as  many  suppose, 
but  those  of  an  eligible  age  who,  fresh  from  a  recent 
medical  examination,  give  promise  of  long  and  useful 
lives.  The  moment  this  accession  of  new  blood  ceases  to 
be  added  to  the  body  or  losses  are  larger  than  gains,  then 
the  average  age  and  death  rate  advances.  Orders,  busi- 
ness enterprises,  etc.,  are  like  bicycles  —  kept  moving 
steadily  forward  there  is  progress  and  safety  ;  but  with 
laziness,  failure  to  work,  neglect,  lethargy,  carelessness,  or 
ignorance,  they  fail.  Neither  this  order  nor  any  other 
order  of  business  is  exempt  from  the  law  of  earnest  work, 
and  the  most  vital  truth  we  can  utter  is,  that  "  He  who 
by  the  plow  would  thrive,  himself  must  either  hold  or 
drive." 


''Pur  Autre  Vie.'' 


It  Provides  for  our  depend- 
ent ones  when  our  arms  are 
powerless  in  death. 

The 

Modern  Woodmen 

of  America. 


A  Benevolent  and  Bene&t 
Fraternity. 


It  pays  its  CertiScates  of 

$500 

$IyOOO 
$2yOOO 
$3,000 
In  full  promptly. 


Cheapest  and  Best^ 

Because  it  Takes  the  Cream  of  Insurance, 
both  as  to  Territory  and  Character  of  Mem- 
bership. Pays  no  Dividends  to  Stockholders. 


Popular.    Progressive.  Equitable. 


$3>^35>ooo  Paid  to  Its  BeneGciaries. 


HERE  are  two  thousand,  six  hun- 
dred and  fifty  Camps  and  one 
hundred  and  fifteen  thousand 
members  in  good  standing.  The 
largest  number  of  assessments 
called  during  any  one  year  was 
eleven.  The  Modern  AVoodmen 
of  America  now  pays  to  its 
beneficiaries  an  average  of  $100,000  per  month.  The 
grandest  system  of  mutual  fraternal  insurance  ever  yet 
devised.  Its  salient  features  are  a  limited  and  selected 
territory,  selected  risks,  a  central  jurisdiction,  with  a 
minimum  running  expense,  graded  assessments,  and  no 
dividends  to  stockholders. 

The  following  is  a  statement  of  claims  allowed  from 
organization  to  August  31st,  1894  : 


Year. 
1884 
1885 
1886 
1887 
1888 
1889 
1890 
1891 
1892 
1893 
1894 


Xo.  of 

Xo.  Claims 

Assessments. 

Allowed. 

Amount. 

Jlemhership. 

  3 

2 

$  4,000 

2,000 

  7 

6 

14,000 

4,569 

  7 

21 

42,000 

8,050 

  8 

40 

86,000 

15,280 

 9 

85 

172,000 

24,980 

  8 

100 

204,000 

39,540 

 11 

218 

464,000 

42,762 

 11 

241 

476,000 

56,203 

 11 

341 

695,000 

72,644 

 11 

451 

955,000 

88,223 

 8 

347 

731,000 

108,895 

Totals  

.$1,852 

$3,843,000 

The  growth  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  has 
been  greater  than  any  other  fraternal  benefit  society  in 


200 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


the  United  States,  territory  considered,  and  the  cost  to 
its  members  has  been  lower  than  any  other.  The  mem- 
bership by  states  August  31st,  1894,  in  absolute  good 
standing,  was  as  follows  : 

Illinois  43,559      North  Dakota   895 

Kansas   13,848      Missouri   2,193 

Nebraska  14,149   

Iowa  11,401  Total  Aug.  31st,  1894.  .  .108,895 

Wisconsin  12,258       Membership  Dec.  31, 1893.  88,223 

Minnesota   5,314   

Michigan   3,711       Net  increase  Jan.  1st,  1894, 

South  Dakota   1,567  to  Aug.  31st,  1894..  20,672 

Certificates  issued  January  1st,  1894,  to  August  31st,  1894,  26,667. 

The  average  cost  of  management  per  year  for  each 
policy-holder  of  twenty-five  leading  old-line  life  insurance 
companies  for  the  year  1892  was  $29.34. 

The  avejage  cost  of  management  per  year  for  each 
member  of  the  thirt3^-two  fraternal  insurance  societies 
belonging  to  the  National  Fraternal  Congress  for  the  year 
1892  was  $1.20. 

The  cost  per  member  of  management  of  the  Modern 
Woodmen  of  America  for  the  year  1892  was  75  cents  ; 
and  for  the  year  1893  it  was  70t  cents.  This  is  the 
cheapest  of  any  insurance  societ}^  in  the  world. 

The  average  death  rate  in  said  twenty-five  leading  life 
insurance  companies  for  1892  was  between  sixteen  and 
seventeen  to  each  one  thousand  members.  In  the  thirty- 
two  fraternal  orders  above  mentioned  it  was  10.G95,  in- 
dicating an  average  age  of  about  forty-one  years.  In  the 
Modern  Woodmen  of  America  it  was  only  5.31  for  1892, 
and  5.34  for  1893.  The  average  age  for  1892  w^as  37.55, 
and  for  1893  was  37.53. 

The  average  cost  to  carry  $1,000  in  the  thirty-two  fra- 
ternal societies  for  1892  was  $12.03.  The  average  cost  in 
the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  for  the  years  1890, 
1891,  1892,  and  1893  has  only  been  $4.95  per  $1,000  for 
each  year. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


201 


No  other  society  in  the  United  States  can  show  so  cheap 
insurance  for  these  four  years. 

It  provides  for  the  payment  of  $500,  $1,000,  $2,000,  or 
$3,000  at  death  to  the  families  of  deceased  members  ; 
also,  care  and  attention  in  sickness.  Assessments  for  the 
purpose  of  paying  benefits  are  graduated  according  to 
the  age  of  the  person  at  joining,  the  grading  being  in 
proportion  to  the  average  expectancy  of  life  by  the 
standard  American  tables.  The  rate  does  not  increase, 
but  remains  the  same  as  at  the  beginning,  special  induce- 
ment being  thus  oflPered  to  young  and  middle-aged  men. 

The  ordinary  expenses  of  the  Local  and  Head  Camps 
are  paid  by  semi-annual  dues  in  addition  to  the  assess- 
ments, the  amount  of  which  dues  is  regulated  by  the 
Local  Camps. 

The  Modern  Woodmen  has  paid  every  beneficiary,  and 
has  relieved  its  distressed  members  and  their  families 
faithfully.  Every  law  of  the  state  and  nation  has  been 
complied  with,  and  it  to-day  stands  in  the  front  rank  of 
respected  and  honored  fraternities.  Its  membership  is 
composed  of  the  leading  men  of  every  community. 

No  person  will  be  admitted  to  beneficial  membership  in 
this  order  until  he  has  been  examined  by  a  physician  in 
regular  practice  and  found  to  be  a  good  risk,  and  all  ap- 
plications must  be  passed  upon  by  the  Head  Physician. 
Persons  seeking  membership  must  be  of  exemplary  char- 
acter, of  sound  physical  health,  over  eighteen  and  under 
forty-five  years  of  age. 

The  following  occupations  are  prohibited  :  Railway 
brakemen,  railway  engineers,  railway  firemen  and  switch- 
men, miners,  employes  in  gunpowder  factories,  whole- 
salers and  manufacturers  of  liquors,  saloonkeepers,  bar- 
tenders, balloonists,  sailors  on  the  lakes  or  seas,  plow- 
grinders  and  brass  workers,  professional  base  ball  players, 
professional  firemen,  and  soldiers  in  the  regular  army. 


202 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


The  financial  matters  are  guarded  by  an  admirable 
system  of  checks  and  counter-checks,  making  fraud  and 
deception  impossible,  and  its  bond  of  fraternal  union 
admirable.  The  financial  system  is  almost  perfect.  All 
moneys  received  by  the  Head  Clerk  are  remitted  to  the 
Head  Banker.  These  receipts  of  the  Head  Clerk  are 
published  monthly  in  the  official  paper,  and  receipts 
given  by  him  must  correspond  in  amount  with  his  pay- 
ments to  the  Head  Banker.  The  Head  Banker  can  pay 
out  no  money  except  upon  an  order  signed  by  at  least 
three  members  of  the  Board  of  Directors,  the  Head  Con- 
sul, and  the  Head  Clerk.  All  orders  must  be  issued  upon 
claims  submitted  to  and  approved  by  the  Board  of  Direc- 
tors. No  one  can  draw  a  cent  from  the  general  fund  ex- 
cept upon  such  an  order. 

Deputy  Head  Consuls,  having  written  a.uthority,  are 
authorized  to  institute  local  Camps.  The  adoption  fee  is 
$5  and  medical  examination  fees  for  each  applicant. 
Charter  for  new  Camp  $100. 

In  each  congressional  district  is  a  resident  Deputy 
Head  Consul,  whose  duty  it  is  to  organize  new  Camps. 
Apply  to  the  deputy  of  your  district,  or  C.  W.  Hawes, 
Head  Clerk,  for  full  information. 

The  following  is  a  table  of  the  assessment  rates  in  force 
from  and  after  January  1st,  1893  : 


Age  at  Nearest  Birthday. 

$500. 

$1,000. 

«2,000. 

$3,000. 

From  18  to  28  years  

 $  .25 

1  .40 

$  80 

$1.20 

 25 

.45 

.85 

1.30 

 25 

.45 

.90 

1.35 

 30 

.50 

.95 

1.45 

 30 

.50 

1.00 

1.50 

 30 

.55 

1.05 

 35 

.55 

1.10 

An  applicant  who 

is  past  forty-one 

cannot 

secure 

a  cer- 

tificate  for  more  than  $2,000. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Buok.  203 
The  Modern  Woodmen  of  America. 

By  J.  G.  JOHNSON,  Director. 


Among  the  many  modern  fraternal  orders  guaranteeing 
death  benefits  to  their  members,  the  Modern  Woodmen 
of  America  is  one  of  the  strongest,  numericall}",  finan- 
cially, and  fraternall}^  Its  certificate  is  encumbered  with 
no  side  issues,  such  as  sick  or  disability  benefits,  but  is  a 
direct  promise  to  pay  one,  two,  or  three  thousand  dollars 
at  the  member's  death,  while  in  good  standing. 

As  at  present  organized  this  order  is  an  Illinois  corpo- 
ration, acting  under  a  charter  granted  by  the  State  of 
Illinois,  May  5th,  1884.  As  thus  organized  it  loses  none 
of  the  fraternal  characteristics  found  in  its  most  favored 
competitors,  but  has,  in  addition  to  these,  all  the  advan- 
tages to  be  found  in  strict  state  supervision  and  control, 
insuring  to  its  membership  honesty  and  fidelity  upon  the 
part  of  its  ofiicers  in  the  conduct  of  its  business. 

Prior  to  the  date  of  incorporation  straggling  and  spas- 
modic efforts  to  properly  organize  the  order  had  been 
made  ;  but  a  year  and  a  half  of  this  work  had  only  re- 
sulted in  the  recruiting  of  a  membership  of  six  hundred 
at  the  date  of  the  incorporation  above  mentioned. 

In  the  ten  years  since  its  incorporation  the  numerical 
growth  of  this  order  has  been  phenomenal.  By  steady, 
substantial,  and  continuous  accretions  it  has  advanced 
from  a  membership  of  six  hundred  in  1884  to  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty  thousand  in  1894,  and  the  most  gratify- 
ing feature  of  this  increase  is  found  in  the  fact  that  years 
of  public  inspection  and  private  investigation  seem  but 
to  strengthen  it  in  public  esteem  ;  more  new  certificates 
(24,385)  having  been  written  in  1893  than  in  any  year  of 
its  existence,  and  more  in  the  first  eight  months  of  1894 
than  in  any  previous  year  of  its  history. 


204 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


Under  its  present  charter  the  order's  Head  Office  is 
located  at  Fulton,  Illinois,  and  its  business  is  restricted 
to  the  states  of  Illinois  (north  of  the  38th  parallel,  and 
excepting  Cook  county),  Minnesota,  Iowa,  Nebraska, 
Wisconsin  (except  the  city  of  Milwaukee  and  suburbs), 
Michigan  (except  the  city  of  Detroit  and  suburbs),  Kan- 
sas, North  Dakota,  South  Dakota,  and  Missouri  (north  of 
the  30th  parallel,  and  excepting  St.  Louis  county)  ;  thus 
giving  it  a  territory  in  which  to  operate  the  healthiest  on 
earth,  and  within  that  territory  practically  a  village  and 
country  membership,  with  its  sanitary  and  physical  ad- 
vantages, and  consequent  low  death  rate,  which  is 
unequivocally  demonstrated  by  the  low  cost  of  the  pro- 
tection furnished  its  members  by  this  order. 

Its  charter  also  divides  its  governing  bodies  into 
"  Local  Camps  "  and  a  "  Head  Camp,"  the  former  com- 
prising the  local  organizations  scattered  at  various  points 
throughout  the  above  named  states,  and  the  latter  being 
the  legislative  and  governing  assemblage  of  the  order, 
which  meets  every  two  years,  and  is  composed  of  dele- 
gates representing  the  local  Camps  in  the  various  states. 

Local  Camps  adopt  and  govern  the  membership  under 
the  laws  of  the  order  and  local  Camp  by-laws,  collect  and 
remit  assessments,  and  participate,  by  an  accredited 
delegate,  in  the  general  legislation  of  the  order.  There 
are  at  present  two  thousand  six  hundred  local  Camps 
organized. 

The  Head  Camp  elects  the  Head  Officers  of  the  order, 
enacts  and  amends  the  Fundamental  Laws,"  provides 
for  the  management  of  the  business  and  revenue  therefor 
during  the  interim,  dictates  the  general  policy  of  the 
order,  and  passes  upon  all  business  of  a  general  nature 
coming  before  it.  The  next  Head  Camp  will  be  the  ninth 
in  the  order's  history,  and  will  be  held  at  Madison,  Wis- 
consin, beginning  the  first  Tuesday  in  June  (4th),  1895. 
Under  our  present  law  it  will  be  made  up  as  follows  : 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


205 


December  27th,  1894,  delegates  elected  by  all  legally 
organized  Camps  (^.  e.  Camps  having  ten  or  more  mem- 
bers) will  meet  at  the  capital  of  their  respective  states, 
and  there  organize  a  State  Convention."  This  conven- 
tion, among  other  duties,  will  elect  delegates  and  alter- 
nates to  the  Head  Camp  on  the  basis  of  one  delegate  at 
large,  and  in  addition  one  delegate  for  every  five  hundred 
members  within  such  state,  or  major  fraction  thereof  ; 
and  also  alternates  for  such  delegates.  These  delegates 
need  not  necessarily  be  elected  from  those  in  attendance 
at  this  State  Convention,  but  may  be  selected  from  the 
entire  membership  within  the  state.  The  delegates 
chosen  at  these  state  conventions  will  receive  credentials 
from  the  Head  Clerk,  which  will  entitle  them  to  member- 
ship in  the  Head  Camp  at  Madison  the  following  June. 
In  case  any  delegate  cannot  attend,  the  Head  Clerk  will 
commission  his  alternate  in  his  place.  These  accredited 
delegates  (who  will  by  that  time  number  probabl}^  two 
hundred  and  thirty),  with  three  selected  Deputy  Head 
Consuls,  and  the  standing  committees  and  Head  Officers, 
numbering  about  twenty-five,  will  make  about  two  hun- 
dred and  sixty  members  of  the  Madison  Head  Camp,  or 
about  double  the  number  in  the  last  preceding  one. 

In  the  interim  between  the  meetings  of  the  Head  Camp, 
the  business  of  the  order  is  under  the  supervision  of  the 
Head  Consul,  Head  Clerk,  Head  Banker,  Board  of  Di- 
rectors, and  Auditing  Committee. 

The  Head  Consul  has  general  supervision  of  the  busi- 
ness of  the  order,  and  special  charge  of  the  fraternal 
features  and  increase  of  membership.  The  Head  Clerk 
has  general  charge  of  the  accounting  department,  books, 
records,  and  supplies.  The  Head  Banker  has  charge  of 
the  funds  of  the  order.  The  Head  Consul,  Head  Clerk, 
and  Head  Banker  are  located  hundreds  of  miles  apart, 
but  the  business  is  so  systematized  that  each  department 
is  in  constant  touch  with  every  other,  and  the  financial 


206 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


records,  though  kept  in  separate  offices,  have  not  in  the 
past  three  years  shown  a  discrepancy  of  a  cent. 

The  Board  of  Directors  meets  each  month  at  the  office 
of  the  Head  Clerk,  at  Fulton,  Illinois,  and  transacts  all 
the  financial  business  of  the  order  properly  coming  before 
it.  It  investigates  and  approves  or  rejects  death  claims, 
and  orders  all  assessments  necessary  to  pay  them. 

The  Auditing  Committee  meets  every  six  months  at 
the  office  of  the  Head  Clerk,  compares  the  books  and 
vouchers,  and  passes  upon  bills  for  special  services,  if  any, 
of  the  Head  Officers. 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  the  system  above  detailed  il- 
lustrates a  perfect  system  of  representative  government, 
each  officer's  accountability  being  direct  to  the  Head 
Camp,  and  the  Head  Camp  being  composed  of  the  direct 
representatives  of  the  membership  at  large. 

All  of  the  transactions  of  the  order  are  from  month  to 
month  published  in  detail  in  the  official  organ  of  the 
order,  The  Modern  Woodman,  a  copy  of  which  reaches 
overy  member. 

A  per  capita  tax  of  $1,  yearly,  is  levied  upon  the  mem- 
bership for  the  expense  of  conducting  the  business  of  the 
order,  and  the  system  of  business  is  so  efficient  and 
economical  that  the  entire  expense  for  1893  has  been 
about  70  cents  per  member.  There  are  at  present  no  un- 
paid bills,  and  this  fund  shows  a  surplus  of  over  $100,000. 
But  this  large  surplus  will  be  greatly  depleted  within  the 
next  year  in  paying  per  diem  and  mileage  of  delegates  to 
the  coming  state  conventions  and  the  Madison  Head 
Camp,  which  two  items  it  is  estimated  will  call  for  an  ex- 
penditure of  not  less  than  $50,000. 

The  searching  medical  examinations  insisted  upon  by 
this  order,  together  with  its  selected  territory,  prohibited 
occupations,  and  graded  assessments,  have  combined  to 
make  the  cost  of  indemnity  the  lowest  in  the  histor}^  of 
fraternaLsocieties,  age  and  membership  considered.  The 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


207 


assessments  called  have  never  exceeded  eleven  in  any 
year,  and  this  rate  has  been  maintained  even  during  the 
last  three  years,  wherein  the  ravages  of  la  grippe  have 
abnormally  increased  the  cost  of  life  insurance  in  every 
known  organization. 

Since  its  organization  this  order  has  paid  the  benefi- 
ciaries of  its  deceased  members  over  $4,000,000,  and  dur- 
ing the  year  1893  $906,200  ;  no  allowed  claims  are  hung 
up  or  delayed,  and  the  stated  contributions  of  the  mem- 
bership to  the  Mortuary  Fund  more  than  meet  all 
demands  upon  it. 

Fraternal  life  indemnity  is  no  longer  an  experiment. 
Building  and  loan  associations  w^ere  at  one  time  sneered 
at  by  financiers,  but  to-day  they  hold  more  of  the  people's 
savings  than  the  savings  banks.  So  fraternal  societies, 
though  at  one  time  derided  by  those  engaged  in  the  busi- 
ness of  insurance,  to-day  carry  certificates  of  indemnity 
upon  more  lives  than  any  other  form  or  plan  of  life 
insurance,  and  it  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  in  the 
recent  financial  panic  neither  the  building  and  loan  as- 
sociations nor  the  fraternal  societies  were  heard  asking 
for  receivers  to  protect  them  from  those  holding  valid 
claims  against  them,  but  amid  the  crash  of  vast  financial 
institutions  whose  chief  claims  to  confidence  were  their 
capital  and  surplus,"  these  associations  of  and  for  the 
common  people,  relying  only  upon  the  plighted  faith  of 
their  membership,  promptly  paid  every  claim  upon  pre- 
sentation. 

Of  all  these  societies  now  doing  business,  we  know  of 
none  which  in  scope,  purpose,  or  successful  management 
in  all  its  departments  excels  or  equals  the  Modern  Wood- 
men of  America.  ■ 


208 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


Bene£ciaries. 

By  a.  R.  TALBOT,  Directoe. 


In  the  study  of  the  principles  that  are  fundamental  in 
the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America,  and  the  methods  and 
rules  adopted  by  it  in  carrying  out  the  objects  of  its  crea- 
tion and  in  the  development  of  the  great  scheme  of  pro- 
tection which  it  provides,  there  are  many  factors  which 
challenge  our  attention.  The  experience  of  the  past  few 
years  has  taught  us  that  much  confusion  exists  in  the 
minds  of  members,  and  much  embarrassment  is  experi- 
enced by  the  members  of  the  order  because  of  the  many 
different  classes  of  beneficiaries  that  may  be  designated 
under  the  laws  and  rules  of  our  order.  If  by  what  shall 
be  said  in  the  following  lines  we  shall  be  able  in  a  man- 
ner to  aid  and  assist  the  members  in  properly  designat- 
ing beneficiaries  in  their  certificates  in  the  future,  and 
help  to  discover  the  correct  line  of  payment  of  benefits 
to  beneficiaries  heretofore  named  under  former  rules  and 
laws,  there  shall  have  been  accomplished  all  that  is  ex- 
pected in  this  brief  statement. 

And  first,  let  it  be  said  that  in  a  mutual  fraternal  benefit 
society  such  as  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  the 
beneficiary  designated  in  the  contract  of  indemnity  or 
the  certificate  diff'ers  from  the  beneficiary  named  in  an 
ordinary  policy  of  insurance,  in  this,  that  in  the  latter 
the  beneficiary  obtains  a  vested  right  or  interest  in  the 
policy,  while  in  the  former  the  beneficiary  has  no  vested 
right  in  the  contract  of  indemnity.  This  is  made  so  by 
the  very  nature  of  the  organization  itself.  The  object 
of  the  institution,  as  clearly  stated  in  our  Fundamental 
Laws,  is  to  promote  true  neighborly  regard  and  fraternal 
love  ;  to  bestow  substantial  benefits  upon  widows,  chil- 
dren, heirs,  and  relatives  of  deceased  members,  etc.;" 
and  in  the  management  of  the  order  there  is  given  to  the 


5 


Tlic  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


209 


member  the  privilege  of  appointing  or  designating  that 
member  or  part  of  his  family,  or  t'hose  dependent  upon 
him,  as  he  may  choose,  within  the  lines  named  and 
directed  in  the  organic  law  and  rules  of  the  order. 

The  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  was  originally  or- 
ganized under  a  statute  of  the  State  of  Illinois  which 
permitted  the  organization  of  such  institutions,  and  which, 
taken  together  with  the  decisions  of  the  supreme  court  of 
Illinois,  permitted  the  member  to  designate,  practically, 
any  one  he  chose  as  such  beneficiary.  During  the  session 
of  the  legislature  of  the  State  of  Illinois  in  the  winter  of 
1892  and  1893  there  was  a  new  law  passed  by  the  legis- 
lature affecting  such  institutions  as  the  Modern  Woodmen 
of  America,  which  law  went  into  force  on  June  22d,  1893. 
This  law  is  what  is  known  as  a  law  for  the  organization 
and  management  of  fraternal  beneficiary  societies,  and 
known  as  the  Fraternal  Beneficiary  Society  Act  of  that 
session  of  the  legislature. 

In  this  new  law,  among  other  things,  it  is  provided  that 
"  payment  of  death  benefits  shall  only  be  made  to  the 
families,  heirs,  blood  relations,  affianced  husband  or 
afhanced  wife  of,  or  to  persons  dependent  upon  the  mem- 
ber ;  and  such  benefits  shall  not  be  willed,  assigned,  or 
otherwise  transferred  to  any  other  person." 

Another  section  of  this  law  provides  a  method  whereby 
institutions  of  our  kind  might  continue  to  do  business 
and  be  considered  duly  organized  without  further  re-or- 
ganization, provided  that  certain  application  for  such 
permission  be  made  with  the  Commissioner  of  Insurance 
at  Springfield,  Illinois,  and  other  preliminary  steps  pro- 
vided in  said  act  be  complied  with.  In  due  course  of 
time  the  management  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America 
made  such  application,  as  in  said  law  required,  to  the  In- 
surance Commissioner  of  Illinois  ;  and  the  Modern  Wood- 
men of  America  was  thereupon  permitted  to  do  business 
under  said  new  law,  and  required  by  it  to  confine  its 

14 


210 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


business  to  the  issuance  of  such  certificates  as  should 
have  designated  therein  the  beneficiaries  outlined  in  said 
law.  It  will  be  observed,  however,  that  all  of  the  cer- 
tificates written  prior  to  the  passage  of  the  new  law  above 
referred  to  would  be  valid,  and  the  designation  of  the 
beneficiary,  and  the  changes  in  the  beneficiary  made  by 
the  member,  either  by  will  or  otherwise,  prior  to  the  taking 
efi'ect  of  said  new  laAV,  on  June  22d,  1893,  would  be  held 
good  ;  but  that  after  the  taking  effect  of  said  new  law  and 
the  acceptance  of  its  provisions  by  the  Modern  Woodmen 
of  America,  as  above  stated,  the  beneficiaries  designated 
would  then  have  to  be  confined  to  the  line  embodied  in 
the  law,  which  is  the  basis  upon  which  all  certificates  are 
issued. 

The  new  law  does  not  afi'ect  certificates  written  before 
it  went  into  efi'ect.  In  designating  the  beneficiar}^  there- 
fore, the  member  will  be  careful  to  observe  that  he  should 
designate  only  those  who  are  mentioned  and  included  in 
the  statute,  to-wit :  Members  of  his  family,  or  the  family 
itself,  heirs,  blood  relations,  affianced  husband  or  affianced 
wife  of,  or  some  person  or  persons  dependent  upon  the  mem- 
ber ;  and  it  should  be  distinctly  borne  in  mind  that  after 
the  beneficiary  has  been  thus  designated,  that  the  law 
forbids  that  such  benefits  shall  be  luilled,  assigned,  or  in 
any  way  transferred  to  any  other  person  or  beneficiary. 
This,  however,  does  not  aff^ect  the  mode  of  transferring 
and  assigning  or  changing  the  beneficiary  designated  by 
any  member  heretofore  made  prior  to  June  22d,  1893. 

In  discussing  this  subject  in  detail  it  will  be  our  aim  to 
present  some  suggestions  as  to  the  status  of  the  wife  of 
the  member  in  the  various  states  of  our  jurisdiction  where 
the  member  designates  his  legal  heirs  as  the  beneficiary. 
But  before  passing  to  that  we  observe  that  the  designation 
or  appointment  of  the  beneficiary  in  all  cases  can  be 
changed  at  any  time  during  the  life  time  of  the  member, 
and  another  and  different  beneficiary  substituted  in  place 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


211 


of  the  former  one  in  accordance  with  the  rules  and  regu- 
lations of  the  order.  On  the  back  of  each  certificate  the 
member  will  find  a  blank  form,  upon  which  at  any  time 
he  may  change  the  beneficiary  ;  and  by  surrendering  the 
certificate  and  transmitting  it  to  the  Head  Clerk  he  will 
have  issued  to  him,  upon  the  payment  of  the  usual  fee, 
a  new  certificate  designating  the  beneficiary  as  desired 
b}^  the  member. 

In  this  connection  it  may  be  well  to  state  that  it  is  not 
necessary  that  the  certificate  should  be  delivered  to  the 
beneficiary.  The  contract  for  the  protection  to  the  bene- 
ficiary lies  between  the  order  and  the  member  himself, 
and  its  terms  are  binding  upon  the  order,  if  all  other  con- 
ditions are  complied  with,  whether  the  certificate  has 
ever  been  in  the  possession  of  the  beneficiary  designated 
or  not. 

Coming  now  to  the  difi'erent  beneficiaries  that  may  be 
designated  as  provided  by  the  statute,  it  becomes  im- 
portant to  know  who  are  included  in  these  distinct  terms, 
^' families,"  '^leirs,"  blood  relations,"  ''affianced  hus- 
band," or  ''  afiianced  w^ife,"  or  "  persons  dependent  upon 
the  member." 

Families. —  There  are  few  happier  w^ords  connected 
with  the  history  of  human  society  than  ''  home "  and 
^'family;"   and  the  common  acceptation  of  the  word 

family  "  is  such  as  to  include  the  father,  mother,  and 
children  of  the  home,  the  protection  for  which  our  order 
has  become  famous.  It  seems  that  the  best  law  writers, 
in  defining  the  word  ''  family  "  in  its  use  here  made,  con- 
sider it  to  mean  the  father,  mother,  and  children,  al- 
though some  authorities  have  held  that  the  broad  mean- 
ing of  the  word  family  "  would  include  servants  and  all 
those  who  live  together  under  one  roof  and  under  the 
common  support  of  one  head  ;  but  in  those  cases,  as  one 
author  clearly  expresses  it,  ''  there  is  absent  that  peculiar 
feature,  which  can  be  better  understood  than  described. 


212 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


which  distinguishes  the  family  even  from  those  who  may 
dwell  within  the  limits  of  the  curtailage."  It  has  been 
held,  however,  by  good  authority,  in  considering  who  are 
included  in  the  family  of  any  person,  that  the  indigent 
mother  and  sisters  who  live  with  the  man  and  are  sup- 
ported by  him  are  members  of  his  family  ;  and  a  widowed 
daughter  and  her  minor  children  residing  with  a  father 
who  was  a  widower  were  held  to  be  members  of  his  family. 
A  dependent  mother  and  dependent  minor  brothers  and 
sisters  residing  with  an  unmarried  man  have  been  held 
to  be  members  of  his  family.  A  minor  brother  and  sister 
residing  with  an  unmarried  man  have  been  held  to  be 
members  of  his  family.  Children  of  the  wife  by  a  former 
husband  have  been  held  to  be  members  of  the  husband's 
family,  and  so  with  adopted  children. 

The  supreme  court  of  Michigan  in  the  case  of  Car- 
michael  vs.  The  Northwestern  Mutual  Benefit  Association, 
51  Michigan,  494,  considering  the  word  ''family,"  says  : 
"  It  is  an  expression  of  great  flexibility.  It  is  applied  in 
many  w^ays.  It  may  mean  the  husband  and  wife  having 
no  children  and  living  alone  together,  or  it  may  mean 
children,  or  wife  and  children,  or  blood  relations,  or  any 
group  constituting  a  distinct  domestic  or  social  body." 

It  seems  apparent  that  in  designating  a  beneficiary  it 
should  always  be  sought,  if  possible,  to  ascertain  the  in- 
tention of  the  member  in  making  the  appointment  or 
designating  the  beneficiary,  and  to  carry  out  that  inten- 
tion, for  the  designation  of  the  beneficiary  is  largely  in 
the  nature  of  a  will  on  the  part  of  the  member  making 
the  designation.  The  designation  "family"  must  or- 
dinarily mean  wife  and  children. 

Heirs. —  As  to  who  is  meant  by  the  designation  of  "  my 
legal  heirs,"  or  "  my  heirs,"  as  beneficiary,  gives  rise  to 
some  perplexing  and  complicated  questions  that  can  only 
be  settled  and  proper  distribution  of  the  benefits  made  at 
the  member's  death  by  referring  to  the  statute  law  of  de- 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh 


213 


scent  or  distribution  of  property  of  the  state  in  whicli  the 
contract  of  indemnity  is  made  ;  and  as  this  involves  the 
laws  of  distribution  of  the  various  states  of  our  jurisdic- 
tion, it  seems  proper  that  a  brief  statement  of  the  rule  in 
each  of  the  ten  states  should  be  made.  All  the  more  does 
this  seem  apparent  when  it  is  important  that  we  learn, 
if  possible,  the  status  of  the  wife  and  her  interest  in  the 
benefit  when  the  designated  beneficiary  is  heirs."  In 
this  connection  it  may  be  well  to  add  that  the  interpreta- 
tion and  the  enforcement  of  the  contract  of  indemnity 
known  as  the  certificates  issued  by  our  order  must  be 
made  according  to  the  laws  of  the  state  in  wdiich  said 
certificates  or  contracts  of  indemnity  are  delivered  to  the 
member.  The  question,  who  is  an  heir  ?  within  the 
meaning  of  the  term  used  here  is  frequently  asked.  Mr. 
Blackstone,  the  celebrated  law  writer  (2d  Black.  Com., 
page  201)  defines  an  ''heir"  to  be  "he  upon  whom  the 
law  casts  the  estate  immediateh^  on  the  death  of  the  an- 
cestor." Taking  this  definition  as  a  basis,  and  applying 
the  statutes  of  the  various  states  of  our  jurisdiction 
relative  to  distribution  of  personal  property,  respectively, 
we  are  enabled  to  determine  what  interest  the  survivors 
of  deceased  neighbors  have  in  the  benefits  where  the  in- 
demnity named  in  the  certificate  is  made  payable  to 
"heirs"  as  beneficiary.  Very  frequently  the  member 
designates  his  "heirs"  as  the  beneficiary,  believing  he  is 
providing  protection  for  his  wife  and  children  in  equit- 
able proportion  ;  but  in  some  of  the  states  of  our  juris- 
diction the  w^ord  "heir"  would  exclude  the  wdfe  from 
participating  in  or  receiving  any  of  the  benefits  under 
such  a  designation  ;  and  inasmuch  as  it  is  believed  that 
the  great  mass  of  Woodmen  desire  to  protect  the  wife  as 
well  as  the  children  of  the  family,  it  is  important  that  we 
know,  if  possible,  the  meaning  and  effect  of  the  word 
"  heirs  "  as  used. 


214 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Bo  ok. 


Illinois. —  In  Illinois  under  the  law  of  distribution  of 
personal  property  the  designation  legal  hieirs,"  where 
the  deceased  member  leaves  a  widow  and  a  child  or  chil- 
dren, it  would  exclude  the  widow  from  participating  in 
the  benefits.  The  supreme  court  of  that  state  has  de- 
cided in  the  case  of  Gauch  vs.  St.  Louis  Mutual  Life  In- 
surance Co.,  88  111.,  page  251,  that  where  insurance  on  the 
life  of  deceased  is  payable  to  his  "  legal  heirs,"  in  such 
case  the  Avidow  is  not  a  legal  heir.  However,  should  de- 
ceased leave  no  cliildren,  but  his  wife  only  surviving  him, 
then  such  widow  would  take  the  benefits  under  the  desig- 
nation ''legal  heirs." 

Iowa. —  The  same  rule  prevails  in  Iowa  as  that  just 
stated  in  Illinois.  Where  a  deceased  leaves  a  widow  and 
child  or  children  the  widow  is  not  an  heir  where  the  desig- 
nated beneficiary  is  ''legal  heirs,"  but  the  benefit  in  such 
cases  goes  entirely  to  the  surviving  child  or  children. 
The  supreme  court  of  Iowa,  in  Phillips  vs.  Carpenter  et  al., 
79  Iowa,  page  600,  has  clearly  expressed  the  rule  as  fol- 
lows :  "  Where  a  deceased  left  a  widow  and  one  child, 
and  also  a  life  insurance  policy  payable  to  his  legal  heirs  : 
Held,  that  the  widow  was  not  included  in  the  term  *  legal 
heirs,'  and  that  the  whole  amount  of  the  policy  was  pay- 
able to  the  guardian  of  the  children." 

The  statutes  of  Iowa  provide  that  "  if  the  intestate 
leaves  no  issue,  one-half  of  his  estate  shall  go  to  his 
parents  and  the  other  half  to  his  wife,"  and  under  this 
statute  and  the  decisions  of  the  Iowa  supreme  court,  the 
widow  heing  the  sole  survivor,  would  take  half  of  the 
estate,  one-third  being  by  virtue  of  her  dower  interest  and 
one-sixth  of  the  estate  as  heir-at-law. 

See  Smith  vs.  ZucJcmeyer,  S3  Iowa,  llf. 
Carpenter  vs.  Phillips,  79  Iowa,  page  692. 

Kansas. —  In  Kansas  the  statute  provides  that  ''if  the 
intestate  leaves  no  issue,  the  whole  of  his  estate  shall  go 
to  his  wife,"  and  if  he  leaves  no  wife  or  issue,  the  whole 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


215 


of  his  estate  shall  go  to  his  parents.  In  Dodge  vs.  Beeler, 
12  Kansas,  524,  the  court  says  :  Under  our  statute, 
upon  an  intestate's  death  one-half  his  property  descends 
to  his  wife  and  the  other  half  to  his  children."  See  also  — 
Schermerhorn  vs.  Mahafie,  S^.  Kan.,  108, 
Comstock  vs.  Adams,  23  Kan.,  513. 

In  this  state  the  rights  of  the  husband  and  the  wife 
are  alike  as  to  inheritance. 

Michigan. —  In  Michigan,  after  the  debts  are  paid,  one- 
third  of  the  personal  property  goes  to  the  widow  of  the 
deceased,  and  the  remaining  two-thirds  to  his  children, 
except  that  if  there  be  but  one  child,  to  the  widow  one- 
half  of  the  residue  and  to  such  child  the  other  half.  If 
the  deceased  leaves  a  widow  and  no  children  or  the  issue 
of  a  deceased  child  surviving  him,  then  such  residue,  if 
it  shall  not  exceed  the  sum  of  $1,000,  shall  go  to  such 
widow,  and  if  it  exceeds  the  sum  of  $1,000  such  excess 
shall  be  distributed  one-half  to  such  widow  and  the  other 
half  to  the  father  of  the  deceased,  if  living  ;  if  not,  such 
other  half  shall  be  distributed  equally  to  the  mother  and 
the  brothers  and  sisters  and  the  issue  of  any  deceased 
brother  and  sister  in  equal  proportions,  share  and  share 
alike  ;•  and  if.  there  shall  be  neither  father  nor  mother, 
brother  nor  sister,  nor  issue  of  such  brother  or  sister  sur- 
viving, then  such  residue  shall  go  to  the  widow. 
^ee  Hascal  vs.  Cox,  4-9  Mich.,  4-3S. 

Minnesota. —  In  Minnesota,  after  paying  the  debts,  the 
personal  property  would  be  distributed  as  follows  :  To 
the  wife  one-third,  and  the  remainder  to  the  child  or 
children  equally,  if  any  there  be.  If  no  children,  then 
the  entire  residue  would  go  to  the  widow. 

Missouri. —  In  Missouri  the  wife  would  not  take  if  the 
deceased  left  a  wife  and  child  or  children.  If,  however, 
there  were  no  children  or  descendants  of  children,  no 
father  nor  mother,  no  brother  nor  sister,  nor  their  de- 
scendants, the  wife  would  then  take  the  residue  of  personal 


216 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


property  after  paying  the  debts.    In  Missouri  personal 
property  does  not  descend  directly  to  the  heirs,  but  passes 
to  the  administrators  for  payment  of  debts  and  other 
claims  under  the  administration  law. 
See  19  Missouri,  1^05. 

Nebraska. —  In  Nebraska,  in  distributing  the  personal 
estate  after  payment  of  debts,  the  residue  of  property 
would  be  distributed  equally  between  the  wife  and  child, 
the  wife  taking  the  same  share  of  the  residue  as  a  child 
of  the  intestate  would  be  entitled  to.  If  the  intestate 
leaves  a  wife  and  no  kindred,  his  estate  shall  go  to  such 
widow  absolute. 

North  Dakota  —  South  Dakota. —  In  North  Dakota 
and  South  Dakota  the  law  is  identical.  In  these  two 
states,  if  the  intestate  leaves  a  widow  and  child,  the  per- 
sonal property,  after  the  payment  of  debts,  will  be  divided 
equally  between  the  widow  and  children.  If  the  deceased 
left  a  wife  and  more  than  one  child,  one-third  of  the  per- 
sonal propert}^  would  pass  to  the  wife  and  the  remainder 
to  his  children  in  equal  shares.  If  no  children  were  left 
surviving,  the  property  would  pass  to  the  widow. 

Wisconsin. —  In  Wisconsin,  after  the  payment  of  debts, 
the  widow  would  receive  an  equal  share  with  the  children 
where  the  deceased  leaves  wife  and  child  or  children  ;  in 
the  distribution  of  the  property  she  stands  in  the  same 
relation  as  a  child. 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  in  designating  heirs"  as  the 
beneficiary,  the  different  states  of  our  jurisdiction  put  a 
different  interpretation  on  the  term  used  touching  the  in- 
terest the  wife  takes  in  the  indemnity  or  benefit  provided, 
and  if  the  member  would  be  sure  to  protect  the  wife  he 
should  clearly  express  it  by  designating  the  interest  he 
desires  her  to  have  in  the  benefit.  The  general  current 
of  authority  is  to  the  effect  that  when  applied  to  the  suc- 
cession of  personal  property  the  word  heirs  "  means  next 
of  kin,  and  the  widow  is  excluded.    For  full  information 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


Ill 


as  to  what  members  of  the  family  or  relatives,  aside  from 
widow  or  children,  would  take  in  each  particular  case 
under  term  heirs/'  reference  must  be  had  to  the  statutes 
of  the  respective  states  of  our  jurisdiction. 

Blood  Relations — Affianced  Wife. — We  scarcely 
need  stop  to  suggest  an  explanation  of  who  are  included 
in  either  of  these  sub-divisions.  "  Blood  relations  "  is  a 
term  denoting  kindred  or  relation,  which  all  understand, 
and  any  designation  of  a  person  w^ho  is  thus  related  to 
the  member  would  be  a  good  designation. 

The  term  "  affianced  wife  "  needs  no  explanation  to  a 
member  who  finds  himself  in  the  condition  in  which  he 
seeks  to  have  such  a  certificate  wTitten.  We  must,  how- 
ever, suggest  that  there  can  be  no  vested  right  in  the 
certificate  to  the  affianced  wife  such  as  will  preclude  the 
member  from  changing  the  beneficiary  and  designating 
some  other  beneficiary  in  lieu  thereof. 

We  come  now  to  the  last  description  of  persons  named 
in  the  statute  who  are  permitted  to  be  named  as  benefici- 
aries. 

Persons  Dependent  Upon  the  Member. —  There  are 
various  tests  which  have  been  suggested  by  those  who 
have  given  this  subject  much  thought  and  study  as  to 
how  to  clearly  define  the  term  "  persons  dependent  upon 
the  member."  It  has  been  suggested  that  it  should  in- 
clude those  only  whose  support  the  law  makes  incumbent 
upon  the  member.  But  this  is  found  to  be  not  a  just  and 
a  uniform  rule,  consequently  others  have  suggested  those 
w^hom  the  member  is  morally  and  in  duty  bound  to  sup- 
port ;  but  courts  have  uniformly  been  very  liberal  in 
construing  this  expression,  and  have  upheld  the  designa- 
tion if  there  was  any  possible  way  of  so  doing  ;  so  it  has 
been  held  that  an  indigent  mother  and  sister  who  lived 
with  a  man  and  are  supported  by  him  as  members  of  his 
family,  and  a  widowed  daughter  and  her  minor  child  re- 
siding with  a  father  who  was  a  widower  were  held  to  be 


218 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


dependent  upon  him.  Children  of  a  wife  by  a  former 
husband  residing  with  the  family  have  been  so  held. 

Webster  defines  the  word  dependent  "  to  mean  "  one 
who  depends  ;  one  who  is  sustained  by  another,  or  who 
relies  upon  another  for  support  or  favor;"  but  it  has 
been  determined  by  courts  that  servants  are  not  to  be 
classed  among  dependents  "  as  those  who  are  supported 
by  the  master.  In  Ballou  vs.  Guile,  50  Wis.,  614,  the  su- 
preme court  of  that  state  defined  dependent  "  as  follows: 
We  think  the  true  meaning  of  the  word  '  dependent '  in 
this  connection  means  some  person  or  persons  dependent 
for  support  in  some  way  upon  the  deceased."  This  defi- 
nition seems  to  have  been  approved  by  many  other  courts 
in  considering  similar  language  to  that  under  considera- 
tion. 

In  Missouri  the  question  arose  under  a  statute  authoriz- 
ing certain  benevolent  corporations  to  provide  by  assess- 
ment on  their  members  certain  benefits  for  the  relief  and 
aid  of  the  families,  widows,  orphans,  and  other  depend- 
ents of  the  deceased  members.  In  defining  these  terms 
the  court  said:  ''The  words  'other  dependents'  are 
inserted  to  include  persons  who  not  being  either  members 
of  the  family  of  the  deceased  nor  his  widow  or  orphans, 
are  yet  dependent  upon  him  in  some  manner."  Any 
other  construction  would  require  the  court  in  each  case 
to  enter  into  an  investigation  of  the  fact  how  far  the 
widow,  or  orphan,  or  any  member  of  the  family,  was  self- 
supporting,  which,  if  followed  out,  instead  of  furthering 
the  objects  of  these  associations  would  soon  produce  their 
complete  destruction.  This  is  in  accord  with  the  con- 
struction placed  upon  the  statute  of  Michigan  in  Lodge 
vs.  Narin,  60  Mich.,  44,  where  it  is  held  that  the  laws  of 
Missouri  expressly  forbid  corporations  of  this  sort  from 
paying  benefits  to  any  but  the  member's  family  or  de- 
pendents. The  intent  of  the  provision  is  clearly  to  shut 
out  all  persons  who  are  not  actual  relatives,  or  sustaining 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


219 


any  place  of  relatives  in  some  prominent  way  or  in  some 
actual  dependence  upon  the  member. 

After  all,  it  may  be  said  that  in  determining  who  are 
included  in  the  word  dependents,"  no  direct  or  uniform 
rule  can  be  laid  down,  as  it  is  always  a  question  of  fact. 

Thus  it  can  be  easily  seen  that  the  easiest,  simplest, 
and  safest  designation  to  make  to  carry  out  the  intentions 
of  the  member  is  for  the  member,  in  designating  the 
beneficiary,  to  clearly  and  fully  express  the  intention,  as 

wife,"  ^'  wife  and  child,"  or  particularize  by  name  the 
different  members  of  the  family.  To  illustrate,  courts 
have  held  that  an  adopted  child  was  entitled  to  benefits 
under  the  designation  of  children  ;  "  that  orphan 
children  "  held  not  to  include  adult  children.  Wife  and 
their  child  "  {i.  e.  of  wife  and  insured),  child  by  former 
wife  held,  under  circumstances,  included,  but  their 
children,"  held  to  include  only  children  common  to  them. 
Designating  wife  and  children  "  entitles  them  to  share 
equally.  Wife  divorced  (for  her  own  fault)  has  been  held 
not  entitled  as  heir  "  or  member  of  the  family  to  receive 
benefits,  but  a  wife  divorced  from  bed  and  board  has  been 
held  entitled  to  receive  as  widow. 

In  Riley  vs.  Riley,  75  Wisconsin,  464,  it  has  been  held 
that  the  second  wife  was  entitled  to  benefit  as  against  the 
representatives  of  the  member's  first  wife,  who  had  been 
designated  in  the  certificate  as  the  beneficiary,  though 
such  designation  had  not  been  changed. 

Where  the  designation  is  "  wife  and  children,"  a  child 
born  after  the  death  of  the  member  will  be  entitled  to  re- 
ceive an  equal  share  with  the  other  children,  such  desig- 
nation including  an  unborn  child. 

In  closing  these  suggestions,  it  might  not  be  out  of 
place  to  urge  upon  the  members,  and  those  soliciting 
members  and  filling  out  applications,  that  much  annoy- 
ance, inconvenience,  and  trouble  will  be  saved  by  the 
exercise  of  care  in  such  work,  ever  striving  to  make  clear 


220 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


and  plain  the  intention  of  the  member  in  the  matter  of 
the  designation  of  the  beneficiary,  to  name  only  those 
who  are  included  in  the  terms  and  expressions  used  in 
the  statute,  and  in  instructions  from  the  Head  Office. 


Eligibility  for  Membership, 

By  J.  W.  WHITE,  Dikecto^. 


Orders  like  ours  constantly  keep  in  view  the  necessity 
of  securing  a  good  class  of  risks,  the  limit  of  moral  and 
physical  hazard  which  the  society  is  willing  to  assume 
being  carefully  determined  and  set  forth. 

In  1883  the  condition  of  membership  was  defined  in 
xhe  By-Laws  as  follows  : 

"  Persons  to  be  members  must  be  over  seventeen  and 
under  sixty-five  years  of  age,  of  sound  bodily  health  and 
mind,  of  exemplary  habits,  good  moral  character,  and 
competent  to  gain  a  reputable  livelihood." 

Subsequent  changes  were  made  from  time  to  time  by 
the  various  Head  Gamps,  the  line  of  demarcation  between 
desirable  and  objectionable  risks  being  more  closely  and 
clearly  drawn,  and  at  the  Omaha  meeting  in  1892  the 
By-Laws  were  so  changed  as  to  read  as  follows  : 

Section  A.  Persons  to  become  members  must  be 
white  males,  over  eighteen  and  under  forty-five  years  of 
age,  of  sound  bodily  health  and  mind,  of  exemplary 
habits,  good  moral  character,  and  engaged  in  an  honor- 
able and  lawful  business  or  vocation.  Persons  engaged 
in  the  following  kinds  of  business  or  employment  shall 
not  be  admitted  as  members  of  this  fraternity  :  Railway 
brakeman,  railway  engineer,  fireman,  and  switchman, 
miner,  employe  in  gunpowder  factory,  wholesaler  or 
manufacturer  of  liquors,  saloon  keeper,  saloon  bar-tender. 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Booh. 


221 


balloonist,  sailor  on  the  lakes  or  seas,  plow-grinder  and 
brass-worker,  professional  baseball  player,  and  profes- 
sional fireman,  or  soldier  in  the  regular  army." 

A  duty  is  imposed  on  the  local  Camp  officers  and  the 
membership  at  large  to  exclude  applicants  who  seek  mem- 
bership that  do  not  meet  the  strict  requirements  of  the 
By-Laws,  both  as  to  moral  and  physical  qualifications  ; 
and  not  only  is  this  duty  imposed  in  selecting  material 
for  increasing  the  membership  of  the  order,  but  the  same 
moral  and  legal  obligation  is  required  in  disciplining  and 
expelling  members  who  so  far  neglect  their  obligations 
as  to  violate  the  express  rules  of  the  order,  or  who  by  reason 
of  their  own  vicious  habits  are  no  longer  desirable  mem- 
bers, or  have  entered  into  and  become  engaged  in  a  pro- 
hibited occupation,  thereby  increasing  the  hazard  which 
the  society  is  not  legally  bound  and  should  not  be  ex- 
pected to  carry  in  its  increased  form. 

A  difficult  question  which  frequently  arises,  and  one 
which  in  some  cases  is  not  without  perplexing  complica- 
tions, is  the  one  relating  to  the  application  of  the  amended 
prohibited  list  to  old  members  ;  whether  the  new  list  of 
prohibited  occupations  in  the  provisions  of  the  By-Laws 
above  quoted  applies  to  members  who  become  such  prior 
to  the  change  in  the  By-Law  ?  If  a  man  became  a  mem- 
ber in  1891,  while  engaged  in  the  occupation  of  farming, 
and  in  1894  enlisted  in  the  regular  army,  would  his  cer- 
tificate be  invalidated  because  of  his  change  in  occupa- 
tion—  the  new  occupation  to  which  he  changes  not  being 
in  the  prohibited  class  in  1891,  when  he  became  a  mem- 
ber, but  having  been  embraced  therein  in  1892,  before  he 
engages  therein  ? 

A  general  rule,  applicable  to  all  cases,  cannot  be  laid 
down,  but  the  principle  is  well  established  that  members 
of  fraternal  societies  who  contract  to  be  bound  by  the  by- 
laws of  the  society  which  may  be  subsequently  adopted 
is  controlled  by  any  change  that  may  be  made  therein, 


222 


Tke  Woodman' s  Hand-Book. 


and  the  changed  provisions  apply  to  such  the  same  as 
though  the  membership  dated  subsequent  to  the  change. 
All  certificates  issued  by  the^Modern  Woodmen  of  America 
provide  that  the  member  shall  comply  with  and  be  sub- 
ject to  all  By-Laws  in  force  at  the  time  of  the  adoption 
of  the  member,  or  which  may  thereafter  be  adopted  ;  show- 
ing the  clear  intent  of  the  parties  to  the  contract  to  make 
the  changed  provisions  of  the  laws  a  part  of  the  contract 
with  the  member,  although  he  became  such  prior  to  the 
adoption  thereof. 

Experience  has  shown  that  a  class  of  applicants  for 
admission  to  our  order  feel  the  necessity  of  securing  in- 
demnity because  of  a  premonition  of  death  ;  some  in- 
cipient evidence  of  a  fatal  disease  has  sounded  its  warning, 
and  the  delayed  provision  for  death's  rapid  approach  is 
sought  to  be  made  at  the  expense  of  the  order. 

Applications  for  membership  are  always  made  as  an 
initiatory  step  in  making  provision  in  view  of  death,  on 
the  happening  of  which  the  liabilit}^  of  the  order  ensues, 
and  the  society,  as  a  protection  for  itself  and  to  preserve 
its  existence,  seeks  for  any  evidence  which  may  disclose 
an  early  precipitation  of  liability.  A  careful  examina- 
tion of  the  applicant  by  the  local  physician,  and  a  review 
of  the  application  by  the  Head  Physician,  is  made  for  the 
purpose  of  discovering  the  eligibility  of  the  applicant, 
and  detecting  any  reason,  if  such  exists,  Avhy  the  person 
is  not  physically  qualified  to  become  a  member  of  the 
fraternity.  In  order  that  the  physician  may  determine 
that  the  applicant  is  a  fit  subject  for  membership,  it  is 
necessary  that  all  questions  propounded  in  the  printed 
application  should  be  truthfully  answered.  A  failure  on 
the  part  of  the  applicant  to  so  answer  does,  and  should, 
avoid  the  liability  sought  to  be  established,  as  such  un- 
truthful statement  is  a  fraud  perpetrated  on  the  order. 

The  existence  of  moral  and  social  hazards  are  recog- 
nized, and  placed  on  the  prohibited  list  with  those  of  a 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


223 


physical  character.  A  person  who  is  a  wholesaler  or 
manufacturer  of  liquors/'  regardless  of  the  fact  that  in 
his  habits  he  may  be  temperate,  and  thereby  not  increase 
the  physical  hazard,  is  placed  in  the  prohibited  list,  and 
includes  one  only  of  the  many  classes  that  are  embraced 
in  the  broader  terms  "  of  exemplary  habits,  good  moral 
character,  and  engaged  in  an  honorable  and  lawful  busi- 
ness or  vocation." 

The  moral  stability  and  perpetuity  of  this  order,  its 
social  standing,  the  esteem  in  which  it  is  held  by  the 
community  at  large,  depends  on  the  individuality  of  the 
membership.  That  high  standard  of  membership  which 
begets  confidence  and  respect  should  prevail.  That 
respect  of  the  community  which  invites  accessions,  makes 
membership  desirable,  and  adds  to  the  dignity  of  citizen- 
ship by  reason  thereof,  is  sought.  While  financial  ends 
are  attained  by  membership,  that  is  not  the  sole  desidera- 
tum. The  rapid  growth  attained  by  this  order,  unparal- 
leled in  the  former  history  of  fraternal  societies,  addresses 
itself  to  the  attention  of  those  seeking  indemnity,  and  a 
watchful,  paternal  care  of  all  neighbors  is  necessary  in 
order  to  elevate  the  standard  of  membership. 


Our  Obligation, 

By  C.  T.  HEYDECKER,  Directoe. 


This  term,  as  used  by  fraternal  associations  furnishing 
pecuniary  benefits  to  the  widow,  orphans,  and  dependent 
relatives  of  members  departing  this  life  while  in  good 
standing,  should  be  considered  by  the  member  in  many 
different  ways  ;  it  may  be  said  that  in  its  general  and 
most  extensive  sense,  obligation  is  synonymous  with  duty  ; 
more  technically,  and  as  applied  by  us,  it  is  a  tie  which 
binds  us  to  pay  or  to  do  something  agreeable  to  the  state 


224 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


law  under  which  we  are  organized,  and  the  by-laws  of  the 
association  in  which  the  obligation  is  made  ;  and  it  also 
gives  a  right  to  another  to  require  us  to  give  him  that 
which  was  agreed  upon. 

It  has  been  thought  well  in  this  connection  to  outline 
our  obligation  and  duty.  As  a  member  of  the  associa- 
tion, or  society,  we  are  met  at  the  very  threshold  of  the 
society  with  the  question,  who  should  be  recommended 
for  membership  ?  This  should  not  be  decided  upon  the 
question  of  his  social  qualities  alone,  although  it  is  your 
duty  to  see  that  every  person  proposed  for  membership  is 
of  good  repute,  regular  habits,  and  physically  such  as 
you  would  be  willing  to  place  your  life  in  the  balance 
with,  believing  that  his  will  be  the  one  which  will  endure 
the  longest,  because  upon  the  vitality  of  the  new  members 
depends  the  perpetuity  of  the  society.  Then  he  should 
be  of  such  a  moral  and  social  standing  as  to  merit  the 
confidence  and  respect  of  his  friends  and  acquaintances, 
w^ho  are  not  members,  as  the  society  must  reflect  its  social 
and  moral  superiority  to  the  outside  world  by  the  char- 
acter of  its  members.  You  should  not  allow  any  person 
to  obtain  a  membership  by  means  of  misrepresentations, 
false,  fraudulent,  or  untrue  statements,  or  in  violation  of 
any  of  the  laws  of  the  association,  nor  to  retain  such 
membership  when  so  obtained,  but  should  at  once  put  in 
motion  the  rules  of  discipline  of  the  association  to  either 
effect  his  reformation  or  expulsion  from  the  society, 
thereby  strictly  complying  with  the  laws,  rules,  and  usages, 
holding  allegiance  and  loyalty  to  and  obeying  the  orders 
emanating  from  those  in  authority  for  the  time  being,  so 
long  as  they  do  not  conflict  with  our  civil  or  religious 
liberty.  The  most  important  obligation  to  the  association 
or  society  is  that  each  member  should  familiarize  himself 
with  all  the  laws  for  its  government,  then  live  up  to  them, 
and  insist  that  each  and  every  member  of  his  society 
strictly  does  the  same. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


225 


The  obligation  of  officers  of  the  local  society  is  patience 
and  courtesy  in  the  performance  of  their  duty.  A  large 
percentage  of  the  members  who  drop  out  of  the  society 
do  so  for  some  real  or  imagined  offense  from  an  officer. 
The  officer  should  be  patient,  courteous,  and  painstaking 
with  the  member,  remembering  that  a  member  retained 
is  equal  to  a  new  member  obtained  ;  they  should  see  that 
collections  are  promptl}^  made  from  the  members,  so  that 
all  certificates  may  be  kept  in  force  ;  in  this  capacity  they 
act  as  the  agent  of  the  association  or  societ}^  Such  officer 
has  no  right  to  in  any  manner  violate  or  abrogate  the  law 
by  making  collections  contrary  to  the  law  — that  is,  after 
the  same  should  have  been  paid,  or  when  the  health  of 
the  member  has  been  impaired,  except  as  provided  by  the 
laws.  Each  officer  should  learn  his  duty,  and  then 
promptly  and  strictly  perform  it ;  he  should,  on  the  day 
the  law  provides,  make  his  report  and  remit  at  once  to 
balance  the  same,  so  that  the  order  can  keep  its  obliga- 
tion to  the  beneficiaries  of  deceased  neighbors  by  prompt 
payment  of  the  benefits.  Much  time  and  expense  would 
be  saved  the  order  if  this  could  be  done,  and  claims 
would  be  paid  more  promptly.  What  excuse  can  an  of- 
ficer give  for  not  remitting  on  the  day  the  law  requires, 
other  than  a  neglect  of  obligation  or  duty  ?  A  strict 
observance  of  this  would  enable  the  order  to  discharge  its 
obligation  to  the  widow,  orphan,  and  dependent  bene- 
ficiary by  prompt  payment  of  the  benefit.  When  we 
have  thus  kept  our  obligation,  and  performed  our  duty  as 
members  and  officers  by  obeying  the  laws,  rules,  regula- 
tions, and  requirements  of  the  order,  faithfully  and  con- 
scientiously held  its  interests  sacred,  and  done  all  in  our 
power  to  promote  its  usefulness,  not  inconsistent  with  our 
duty  to  God  and  our  families,  then  will  we  come  to 
the  performance  of  those  obligations  and  duties  which 
answer  the  question,  Who  is  my  neighbor  ? "  It 
is  he  who  watches  over  us  and  gives  us  timely  warning 
15 


226 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


to  avert  danger ;  he  who  will  assist  in  banishing 
visions  of  future  woe  ;  who,  with  others,  has  placed  a 
sacred  fund  in  the  association  which  will  carry  benefits 
to  our  widows,  orphans,  and  dependent  beneficiaries, 
whose  hearts  will  throb  in  sympathy  with  our  loved 
ones,  and  will  be  living  guardians  for  those  we  leave  in 
this  world  of  woe,  helping  to  lift  them  upward  and  onward 
in  life's  struggles,  knowing  that  the  obligation  taken  by 
the  members  will  be  faithfully  performed,  and  that  we 
have  fought  a  good  fight  and  have  finished  our  course  — 
we  have  kept  our  obligation. 


Suggestions  to  Local  Clerks. 

By  C.  W.  HA\yES,  Head  Clerk. 


No  one  should  accept  official  position  unless  qualified 
for  the  discharge  of  the  duties  and  responsibilities  thereof. 

This  truism  applies  with  especial  force  to  the  local 
Camp  Clerk,  for  upon  his  efficiency  as  an  officer,  fidelity 
to  his  trust,  and  zeal  in  the  affairs  of  Woodcraft  depends 
to  the  fullest  extent  the  interests  of  the  Camp  and  that  of 
the  individual  neighbors  as  members  thereof.  An  elec- 
tion to  the  position  is  an  endorsement  by  the  neighbors 
of  the  ability  and  the  integrity  of  the  one  selected,  for 
into  his  keeping  they  must  necessarily  largely  entrust 
their  personal  interests  as  Woodmen,  as  well  as  the 
general  welfare  of  the  Camp. 

The  position  of  Camp  Clerk  is  not  a  sinecure,  and  none 
in  the  order  are  entitled  to  more  credit  or  recognition  for 
services  rendered  than  the  efficient  incumbent  of  this 
office. 

The  question  of  his  compensation  is  a  matter  for  the 
consideration  of  the  Camp,  and  should  be  adjusted  in 


The  WoodmaWs  Hand-BooTc. 


227 


proportion  to  the  membership  thereof,  as  an  item  of 
Camp  expense  contemplated  by  the  provisions  of  Division 
K  of  the  Fundamental  Law. 

The  order's  business,  owing  to  its  graded  assessments 
and  the  different  amounts  expressed  in  its  benefit  certiti- 
cates,  together  with  the  provisions  governing  suspensions 
and  reinstatements,  is  not  free  from  complication.  It  is 
not  every  neighbor,  however  Cjualified  he  may  be  in  the 
management  of  his  personal  business,  who  is  qualified 
for  the  satisfactory  discharge  of  the  duties  of  Camp  Clerk: 
and  just  here  a  grave  responsibility  rests  upon  the  neigh- 
bors of  the  Camp,  which  they  cannot  discharge  in  justice 
to  themselves,  the  welfare  of  the  Camp,  and  the  general 
interests  of  the  order  except  by  selecting  that  one  from 
their  membership  best  Cjualified  to  act  as  their  trusted 
agent  in  tJae  discharge  of  the  duties  of  this  to  them  all  im- 
portant position. 

Having  accepted  the  office,  the  neighbor  selected 
should  at  once  familiarize  himself  with  the  provisions  of 
the  law  sufficiently  well  to  insure  the  efficient  discharge 
of  the  duties  incumbent  upon  him.  As  an  aid  in  this 
direction,  the  following  suggestions,  based  upon  the  pro- 
visions of  the  Fundamental  Law  —  the  guide  for  the 
Head  as  well  as  Camp  officers,  the  organizer,  and  neigh- 
bors—  are  offered: 

First.  Eligibility  for  Membership. —  Residence  within 
the  jurisdiction  of  the  order,  as  defined  in  "  Section  A, 
Division  A."  A  resident  outside  of  that  territory  is  not 
entitled  to  membership.  The  benefit  certificate  of  a  neigh- 
bor transferring  his  residence  from  within  to  without  the 
jurisdiction  is  in  no  way  invalidated  or  affected  by  such 
removal.  Payment  to  his  Clerk  of  assessments  and  dues 
within  the  limit  of  the  time  prescribed  by  the  law  will 
maintain  his  certificate  in  full  force  and  efiPect. 

Second.  The  applicant  must  be  over  eighteen  and  under 
forty-five  years  of  age.  One  who  has  passed  the  age  of 
forty-five  years,  if  but  for  a  single  day,  "is  ineligible. 


228 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


Third.  Must  be  a  white  male,  of  good  moral  character, 
and  qualified  to  pass  the  physical  examination  before  a 
reputable  physician,  to  be  approved  by  the  Head  Physi- 
cian of  the  medical  district  of  which  he  is  a  resident. 

Fourth.  Except  in  cities,  he  must  live  within  the  juris- 
diction of  the  Camp  to  which  application  is  made,  or  ob- 
tain from  the  Camp  in  whose  jurisdiction  he  properly 
belongs  permission  to  join  another,  the  distance  to  be 
computed  by  the  nearest  travelled  route. 

The  liability  for  the  new  Camp  is  invariably  for  the 
first  assessment  levied  subsequent  to  the  date  of  its  char- 
ter. If  a  Camp  is  chartered  on  the  first  day  of  a  montli,  it 
will  be  first  liable  for  the  assessment  levied  upon  the  first 
day  of  the  following  month,  and  under  this  rule  if  its 
charter  did  not  issue  until  the  thirtieth  day  its  liability 
would  be  the  same,  regardless  of  the  completion  of  the  or- 
ganization hy  the  Deputy. 

The  liability  for  the  newly  adopted  Neighbor  into  old 
Camps  is  for  the  first  assessment  levied  subsequent  to  his 
adoption,  which  is  determined  by  the  report  made  by  the 
Camp  Clerk. 

Under  an  increased  benefit  certificate  the  Neighbor's 
first  liability  is  for  the  assessment  current  at  the  date 
borne  by  the  new  certificate. 

At  death  the  Neighbor  is  held  liable  for  the  assessment 
current,  and  which  must  be  remitted  with  the  Pass  Report 
bearing  same  number  as  the  assessment. 

The  "  levy  "  of  an  assessment  is  made  by  the  Board 
of  Directors  at  its  monthly  meetings,  and  publication 
thereof  in  the  Modern  Woodman  is  notice  to  the  Neigh- 
bor to  pay  to  his  Clerk,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  the 
month  following  the  date  thereof,  another  rate  or  assess- 
ment. 

The  "call"  is  notice  to  the  Clerk  of  Camp  to  forward, 
within  twenty  days  from  the  date  thereof,  to  the  Head 
Clerk  the  proceeds  in  the  Camp  officers'  custody  collected 
under  the  previous  assessment  made. 


The  Woodman  s  Hand-Book. 


229 


An  advance  payment  equal  to  his  one  rate  of  assess- 
ment is  paid  by  the  Neighbor  at  adoption  to  his  Clerk, 
and  which  is  converted  into  the  benefit  fund  of  the  Camp, 
where  it  remains  until  the  Neighbor's  first  liability  under 
call,  when  it  is  remitted  to  the  Head  Clerk,  thereby  dis- 
charging his  said  liability,  which  was  for  the  first  assess- 
ment levied  after  his  adoption. 

Under  the  same  date  borne  by  the  call,  notice  of  assess- 
ment, being  the  Neighbor's  second  liability,  is  given  in 
the  Woodma'ii,  under  which  he  is  required  to  pay  to  his 
Clerk  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  the  following  month 
another  rate,  or  in  default  thereof,  under  the  law,  he  stands 
suspended. 

Any  Neighbor  who  has  not  paid  to  his  Clerk  an  assess- 
ment levied  upon  the  second  day  of  a  month  on  or  before 
the  close  of  business  on  the  first  day  of  the  following 
month  stands  suspended.  This  is  the  operation  of  our 
Fundamental  Law,  which  provides,  further,  that  the  bene- 
fit certificate  of  the  Neighbor  during  such  suspension 
shall  be,  and  is,  absolutely  null  and  void. 

The  right  to  fully  reinstate  within  sixty  (60)  days  from 
date  of  suspension  is  guaranteed  the  Neighbor  by  simply 
paying  to  his  Clerk  all  arrearages  and  the  ctirrent  assess- 
ment and  general  fund  dues,  provided  the  Camp  Clerk  is 
satisfied  he  is  in  good  health.  His  reinstatement  dates 
from  the  moment  of  payment,  and  no  further  action  is 
required  to  be  taken  either  by  the  local  or  head  ofiice.  the 
Clerk  noting  such  reinstatement,  and  remitting  with  his 
next  following  Pass  Peport. 

If  suspended  more  than  sixty  (60)  days,  then  the 
Neighbor,  in  addition  to  the  payment  of  all  arrearages, 
must  furnish  from  his  Camp  or  other  reputable  physician 
a  certificate  of  present  good  health  on  blank  '*  Applica- 
tion for  Reinstatement"'  (Form  53),  and  he  will  be  re- 
rated  at  his  acquired  age,  liability  under  the  increased 
rate  being  for  the  first  assessment  levied  after  such  rein- 
statement. 


230 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Boo k. 


A  Neighbor  in  suspension  for  more  than  one  full  year 
can  only  reinstate  as  provided  in  "  Section  G,  Division  J." 
He  should  apply  on  regular  form  No.  5,  which  must  re- 
ceive the  approval  of  a  Head  Physician,  who,  upon  ap- 
proval, will  return  to  the  Camp  Clerk,  who  will  attach 
thereto  the  Neighbor's  old  certificate,  or  if  lost  a  waiver 
therefor,  and  forward  to  the  Head  Clerk,  accompanied  by 
$2.00  (being  per  capita  of  $1.50  and  certificate  fee  of  50 
cents),  remitted  from  the  amount  required  to  be  paid  by 
the  Neighbor  under  the  provisions  of  said  section. 

A  Neighbor  past  fort3^-five  years  of  age  can  reinstate 
within  one  year  from  the  date  of  suspension  ;  if  in  sus- 
pension for  more  than  one  year,  he  can  not  be  reinstated. 

The  Pass  Report  is  the  medium  through  or  by  which 
the  Head  Office  is  informed  of  the  standing  of  or  any  in- 
cident affecting  the  benefit  certificate  of  each  and  every 
Neighbor  in  the  order.  An  error  by  the  Camp  Clerk  in 
formulating  the  same  misleads  the  Head  Clerk,  and  is 
certain  to  result  in  misunderstanding  with  the  auditing 
department. 

The  first  seven  pages  of  the  Pass  Report  are  for  use  in 
noting  thereon  by  name,  under  its  proper  lieading,  any 
and  all  changes  affecting  the  standing  or  benefit  certificate 
of  the  Neighbor  during  the  month  for  which  the  same  is 
rendered,  and  which  is  invariably  for  the  month  preced- 
ing the  date  borne  by  the  call.  Page  eight  is  a  summary 
of  these  changes,  beginning  with  item  one  thereon,  with 
the  number  of  Neighbors  in  good  standing  on  the  first 
day  of  the  month  preceding  the  date  of  report.  The 
footing,  if  the  notations  be  correctly  made,  will  show  the 
number  of  Neighbors  liable  under  the  call,  and,  therefore, 
the  data  for  the  financial  statement,  page  nine.  Never 
fail  to  keep  a  copy  thereof  by  copying  the  same  into  the 
Pass  Report  Book,  supplied  for  that  purpose. 

The  first  liability  of  the  newly  adopted  Neighbor  is  for 
the  assessment  levied  on  the  first  day  of  the  month  fol- 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


231 


lowing  his  adoption,  to  meet  which  he  must  invariably 
pay  one  rate  at  adoption.  On  your  first  Pass  Report  after 
such  adoption  note  the  fact  (giving  name),  item  one,  page 
two,  thereof;  add  to  the  membership,  item  three,  page 
eight,  and  then  deduct  as  not  liable,  item  fourteen,  page 
nine. 

On  the  next  following  Pass  Report  again  add  him  to 
the  membership  statement  as  liable,  item  two,  page  eight, 
and  remit  his  assessment,  item  one,  page  nine. 

Full  instructions  are  printed  on  each  copy  of  the  Pass 
Report  for  the  guidance  of  the  Clerk  in  formulating  the 
same. 

The  per  capita  of  our  order  is  one  dollar  ($1.00)  per 
year,  payable  semi-annually,  strictly  in  advance,  as  pro- 
vided in  Division  K  of  the  Fundamental  Law  ;  fifty  cents 
for  each  Neighbor  to  be  remitted  on  call  accompanied  by 
semi-annual  report,  which  will  be  mailed  the  Clerk  under 
date  of  January  1st  and  July  1st  each  year,  and  which, 
included  in  the  Camp  general  fund  dues,  is  required  to 
be  paid  by  the  Neighbor  to  his  Clerk  of  Camp  in  Decem- 
ber and  June  preceding  said  dates. 

At  adoption  the  applicant  is  required  to  pay  the  Camp 
general  fund  dues,  pro  rata,  to  the  end  of  the  term,  but 
the  Camp  is  not  liable  to  the  Head  Camp  for  any  per 
capita  on  account  of  said  new  Neighbor  for  said  unex- 
pired part  of  the  term. 

The  Camp  is  liable  for  per  capita  for  all  Neighbors  in 
suspension  on  the  first  day  of  a  term,  and  for  whom  re- 
mittance is  not  then  made,  who  subsecjuently  reinstate, 
and  the  same  should  be  remitted  with  the  next  following- 
Pass  Report,  as  provided  on  page  nine  thereof. 

The  rules  governing  the  issue  of  and  change  in  the 
benefit  certificate  are  as  follows  : 

First.  A  duplicate  certificate  cannot  issue  in  any  case 
until  the  original  has  been  accounted  for,  either  by  its 
return  to  the  Head  Clerk's  office,  or  by  the  Neighbor  fur- 
nishing a  "'Waiver''  therefor,  if  lost. 


232 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


Second.  All  data  on  the  application  must  be  filled  in, 
and  every  question  thereon  answered,  with  committee  re- 
ports fully  made,  and  certificate  of  election  by  the  Camp 
Clerk  duly  signed,  before  certificates  can  issue. 

Third.  Enter  on  the  first  fold  of  the  blank  the  Camp 
number  and  name  of  applicant  in  full. 

Fourth.  The  application  of  any  one  who  has  passed 
his  forty-fifth  birthday  cannot  be  entertained,  and  if  past 
forty-one  years  of  age  for  $2,000  only. 

Fifth.  To  secure  a  change  in  the  beneficiary,  it  is  nec- 
essary that  the  Neighbor  fill  in  the  blank  form  on  the 
back  of  his  certificate,  sign  same,  attested  by  the  Camp 
Clerk,  and  forward  to  this  office,  with  fee  of  fifty  cents. 
A  decrease  in  the  amount  of  the  certificate  is  secured  in 
the  same  manner. 

Sixth.  To  secure  an  increase,  the  applicant  must  com- 
ply fully  with  the  provisions  of  Section  ^'  J,"  Division 
^^I,"  Revised  Law,  using  the  application  blank  (Form  5). 

Seventh.  The  fee  for  any  and  all  changes  in  the  cer- 
tificate is  fifty  cents.    See  Section  ''C,"  Division  "  H." 

Eighth,  A  Neighbor  suspended  more  than  one  year 
must  forward  this  office  with  his  application  for  reinstate- 
ment (Form  5),  after  approval  by  the  Head  Physician, 
his  old  certificate,  or  waiver  therefor,  if  lost,  $1.50  general 
fund  dues,  and  certificate  fee  of  fifty  cents.    See  Section 

G,"  Division  "  J." 

Ninth.  A  Neighbor  suspended  more  than  sixty  days 
and  less  than  one  year  must,  in  order  to  reinstate,  furnish 
a  certificate  of  good  health. 

Tenth.  When  adoptions  have  not  been  made  within 
sixty  days  from  the  date  of  the  certificates,  Camp  Clerks 
should  return  certificate  to  the  Head  Clerk's  office,  or  re- 
quire the  applicant  to  furnish  a  certificate  of  "  Present 
Good  Health  "  if  he  appears  for  adoption. 

Eleventh.  A  certificate  should  not  be  delivered  to  the 
applicant  until  he  has,  in  the  presence  of  the  Clerk, 
signed  certificate  at  the  bottom  thereof. 


The  Woodman'' s  Hand-BooTc. 


233 


Twelfth.  Adoptions  should  never  be  made  until  the 
certificate  has  been  received  and  is  ready  for  delivery. 

Remittances  should  invariably  be  made  to  reach  the 
Head  Ofiice  within  twenty  (20 )  days  from  the  date  of  call, 
as  provided  by  the  law,  thereby  avoiding  the  expense, 
labor,  and  annoyance  attending  the  issue  of  second  calls 
to  the  Camp  officers. 

Make  all  remittances  payable  to  the  Head  Banker,  and 
never  to  the  Head  Clerk,  but  mail  same  to  the  Head 
Clerk  for  audit.  There  is  no  exception  to  this  rule,  ex- 
cept for  Head  Physician's  fees,  which  should  be  enclosed 
with  the  application  direct  to  that  official. 

^on-resident  Neighbors  living  at  a  distance  from  their 
Camp  should  invariably  be  receipted  to  for  remittances 
made  to  their  Camp  Clerk.  For  this  purpose  printed 
postal  card  receipts  will  be.  on  order,  furnished  to  Clerks 
at  one  cent  each,  no  charge  being  made  for  the  printing. 

The  next  state  conventions  will  convene  at  the  capitals 
of  the  respective  states  on  December  27th,  1S94.  and  the 
Head  Camp  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  at  Madison. 
Wisconsin,  June  4th,  1895.  For  eligibility,  compensa- 
tion of  delegates,  and  other  particulars,  see  Division  Q," 
Fundamental  Law,  which  fully  explains. 

In  correspondence  invariably  give  your  Camp  number 
and  location  when  addressing  the  Head  Office. 

In  all  matters  pertaining  to  the  growth  and  extension 
of  the  order,  the  construction  of  the  provisions  of  the 
Fundamental  Law.  jurisdictional  Cjuestions,  and  eligibility 
of  membership,  as  well  as  anything  pertaining  to  the 
ritualistic  or  the  secret  work,  to  the  discipline  of  the 
Camp  or  Neighbor,  or  the  issue  of  the  annual  password, 
address  W.  A.  Northcott,  Head  Consul,  Greenville,  111. 

Mail  to  the  Head  Clerk  all  communications  relative  to 
the  audit  of  accounts,  the  standing  of  the  Neighbor  or 
Camp,  claims  (benefit  and  general),  and  the  certificate, 
supply,  and  statistical  departments  of  the  order. 


234 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Bouk. 


Communications  in  regard  to  the  mailing  list,  changes 
in  address,  etc.,  should  be  sent  directly  to  "  Modern 
Woodman  Mailing  Clerk,  Fulton,  Illinois,"  for  which 
purpose  envelopes  may  be  procured  through  the  supph^ 
department,  at  the  same  cost  as  for  other  envelopes. 

The  Fundamental  Law  provides  that  the  mailing  of  a 
copy  of  the  Modern  Woodma7i,  the  official  paper  of  tlie 
order,  containing  a  notice  of  each  assessment  levied  by 
the  Board  of  Directors,  to  the  last  known  address  of  a 
Neighbor  shall  be  conclusive  evidence  of  service  of  notice 
of  such  assessment  ;  it  further  provides  and  makes  it  the 
duty  of  the  Neighbor  to  furnish  the  Head  Clerk  w4th  his 
proper  postoffice  address,  either  direct  or  through  his 
Camp  Clerk. 

The  mailing  list  is  prepared  by  a  competent  printer  at 
the  Head  Office,  over  thirteen  thousand  pounds  of  type 
being  in  use  for  this  purpose.  It  is  kept  corrected  up  to 
date,  all  changes  noted  to  the  mailing  clerk  being 
promptly  made  thereon,  the  copy  for  the  month  being 
forwarded  to  the  publisher  of  the  Woodmaii  only  twenty- 
four  hours  in  advance  of  the  mailing  of  the  edition.  To 
assure  the  receij^t  of  the  paper  (and  to  a  copy  of  which 
each  Neighbor  is  entitled),  it  is  only  necessary  that  the 
Head  Clerk  be  kept  informed  as  to  any  change  in  address. 

The  name  and  address  of  an  applicant  for  membership 
in  the  order  should  be  carefully  given  in  his  application, 
from  which  it  is  taken  for  the  list.  The  name  of  the 
newly-adopted  Neighbor  is  not  given  place  on  the  list 
until  the  report  of  adoption  is  made  by  the  Camp  Clerk 
to  the  Head  Office  in  the  monthly  Pass  Report.  The 
Clerk  should  therefore  be  certain  to  report  an  adoption 
on  his  next  following  report. 

The  Neighbor  is  entitled  to  a  withdrawal  card  upon  re- 
mitting his  Clerk  of  Camp  the  amount  due,  both  benefit 
and  general,  including  the  current  assessment,  with  fifty 
cents  for  said  card,  provided  he  has  not  been  suspended 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


235 


more  than  sixty  days  (in  which  case  a  certificate  of  good 
health  will  be  required),  and  is  otherwise  in  good  stand- 
ing. Upon  compliance  with  the  foregoing  instructions 
the  Camp  Clerk  should  at  once  issue  such  card  to  the  ap- 
plicant. 

The  Clerk  should  at  all  times  have  a  set  of  Death  Proof 
blanks  in  his  possession,  as  frequently  a  month  can  be 
saved  in  the  payment  of  a  claim  by  the  prompt  forward- 
ing of  proofs  to  the  Head  Clerk. 

Immediately  upon  the  report  of  a  death  reaching  the 
Camp  Clerk,  he  should  fill  in  and  mail  to  the  Head  Clerk 
the  blank  oflScial  notice  of  death,"  giving  such  informa- 
tion as  same  calls  for.  Instructions  how  to  formulate 
proofs  accompany  each  set  of  papers. 

The  Head  Clerk  will  mail  to  the  Clerk  of  Camp  bene- 
fit orders  in  full  payment  of  claims  approved  and  allowed 
by  the  Board  of  Directors  as  soon  after  the  adjournment 
of  the  Board  as  the  condition  of  the  benefit  fund  will  ad- 
mit. He  will  also  mail  with  the  orders  full  instructions 
how  further  to  proceed  in  collecting  from  the  Head 
Banker. 

The  annual  password  is  issued  from  the  office  of  the 
Head  Consul  only,  and  is  mailed  in  cipher  to  the  Clerk, 
who  will  deliver  same  to  the  Venerable  Consul.  How- 
ever, before  the  word  will  be  sent  the  Camp  Clerk  is  re- 
quired to  furnish  the  Head  Clerk  with  a  list  of  the  offi- 
cers-elect for  the  year  and  remit  per  capita  for  the  term, 
which  done  the  Head  Clerk  certifies  the  fact  to  the  Head 
Consul. 

Division  Q"  of  the  Fundamental  Law  provides  that 
the  local  Camp  shall  give  all  accused  Neighbors  a  fair 
trial,  while  Division  E  "  of  the  Camp  By-Laws  provides 
the  form  thereof.  The  accused,  if  found  guilty,  is  guar- 
anteed the  right  of  appeal  to  the  Board  of  Directors.  In 
a  majority  of  the  cases  where  an  order  of  expulsion  is 
entered  by  the  Camp,  this  is  done.   It  is  suggested  there- 


236 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


fore,  that  before  a  trial  is  begun  the  Camp  Clerk  should 
procure  from  the  supply  department  a  set  of  appeal 
blanks  (price  25  cents),  which  are  full  and  complete,  and 
by  the  following  of  which  the  legality  of  the  form  of  trial 
will  be  assured. 

The  power  to  grant  dispensations  is  vested  in  the  office 
of  the  Head  Consul  only.  The  Head  Clerk  is  commanded 
by  the  Fundamental  Law  to  enforce  impartially  the  pro- 
visions thereof,  and  is  not  permitted  to  waive  even  the 
least  thereof.  Therefore  do  not  petition  or  expect  him 
to  do  that  which  your  law  says  he  shall  not  do. 


Field  Work  and  Deputies, 

By  W.  a.  NORTHCOTT,  Head  Consul. 


Growth  in  membership  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of 
America  must  be  continuous  and  strong,  or  the  number 
of  assessments,  and  consequently  cost  of  insurance,  will 
increase.  One  benefit  assessment  is  about  the  same  as 
the  entire  annual  i^er  capita  to  the  general  fund.  From 
this  it  will  be  seen  that  it  is  of  vital  importance  that  the 
assessments  be  kept  at  the  minimum.  It  is  not  only  im- 
portant, but  necessary  to  the  life  of  the  order.  If  we  once 
permit  our  assessments  to  grow  too  heavy  our  growth  in 
membership  will  cease,  and  we  pass  from  the  zenith  of 
our  strength  to  the  evening  of  our  decline.  In  the  past 
we  have  been  able  to  keep  the  growth  in  membership 
going  at  a  magnificent  pace,  and  our  assessments  have  not 
increased.  This  has  been  done  without  cost  to  the  general 
fund,  the  field  work  paying  for  itself.  No  other  fraternal 
insurance  society  in  the  United  States  can  show  so  re- 
markable a  record  in  running  the  field  work  without  cost 
to  the  general  fund.    Most  societies  pay  large  salaries  to 


1^ 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


237 


their  organizers  ;  one  organization  recently  cutting  down 
its  representation  in  its  supreme  body  that  it  might  have 
more  money  with  which  to  employ  organizers  to  push  the 
work  in  the  field.  Each  day  competition  becomes  more 
sharp,  and  extraordinary  eff'orts  are  being  put  forward  by 
the  societies  in  our  jurisdiction.  The  hard  times  recently 
prevalent  made  our  growth  for  the  last  six  months  of  1893 
only  about  one-third  of  what  it  was  during  the  first  six 
months  of  that  year.  The  death  rate  was  unusual]}^  large, 
and  the  outlook  for  an  increase  in  assessments  exceedingly 
gloomy.  The  Head  Consul  came  to  the  conclusion,  with 
the  advice  and  consent  of  the  Board  of  Directors,  that  the 
general  fund  could  be  put  to  no  better  use  than  in  push- 
ing the  growth  in  our  membership. 

A  system  of  appointing  a  State  Deputy  in  each  state  in 
the  jurisdiction  has  been  adopted.  The  duty  of  the 
State  Deputy  is  to  select  competent  deputies  in  his 
state  and  fully  instruct  them  and  supervise  their  work. 
Until  they  have  become  very  proficient  in  the  work 
the  State  Deputy  is  present  at  the  institution  of  new 
Camps  organized  by  them.  He  gives  them  schools  of  in- 
struction and  they  make  a  weekly  report  to  him.  All 
correspondence  in  regard  to  field  work  in  his  state  is  re- 
ferred to  the  State  Deputy.  He  attends  all  public  gather- 
ings possible,  and  assists  in  every  way  in  his  power  to 
promote  the  welfare  of  Woodcraft  in  his  state.  He  re- 
ceives a  compensation  out  of  the  general  fund  in  propor- 
tion to  the  work  done  in  his  state.  His  earnings  are  de- 
pendent upon  the  success  of  his  efforts  in  the  field.  He 
makes  monthly  reports  to  the  Head  Consul,  and  is  under 
his  general  supervision. 

It  has  been  the  aim  and  continued  effort  of  the  Head 
Consul  to  place  men  in  the  field  who  would  have  the  re- 
spect and  support  of  the  Neighbors  of  the  jurisdiction. 
It  is  a  matter  of  pride  to  the  order  that  to-day  we  have 
the  best  equipped  corps  of  organizers  of  any  society  in 


238 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


the  United  States.  We  know  of  no  other  society  that 
publishes  its  list  of  organizers,  or  that  retains  so  per- 
manently the  same  organizers.  We  have  deputies  who 
have  given  many  years  to  this  work,  and  by  experience 
have  become  proficient.  The  character  and  competency 
of  the  deputies  is  continually  improving,  and  to-day  they 
rank  as  valuable  officers  of  the  fraternity.  Upon  their 
efforts  depend  the  continuous  growth  and  prosperity  of 
the  order.  They  are  in  the  front  of  the  battle  and  bear 
its  brunt,  and  their  hands  should  be  upheld  by  every  loyal 
Neighbor  who  loves  the  order.  In  the  heat  and  dust  of 
the  conflict  they  bear  the  banner  of  Woodcraft  into  new 
fields  of  conquest. 

The  duties  and  regulations  of  the  District  Deputies  are 
fully  set  forth  in  the  following  instructions  of  the  Head 
Consul.  They  are  the  "  bo3^s  in  the  trenches  "  who  do  the 
fighting  : 

First.  So  far  as  practicable  one  Deputy  Head  Consul 
shall  be  appointed  for  each  congressional  district,  as  now 
apportioned.  Deputies  shall  not  act  outside  of  their  ter- 
ritory named  in  the  commission,  unless  by  permission  of 
the  Head  Consul  or  State  Deputy  in  writing. 

Second.  Applications  for  the  position  of  deputy  shall 
be  made  on  blanks  provided  by  the  Head  Consul  and  State 
Deputy,  and  shall  be  accompanied  by  a  letter  of  recom- 
mendation from  the  Venerable  Consul  and  Clerk  of  the 
applicant's  local  Camp,  together  with  a  bond  with  a  suf- 
ficient security  in  the  sum  of  $300,  conditioned  for  the 
faithful  performance  of  the  duties  of  the  office. 

Third.  After  a  deputy  has  received  his  commission, 
he  should  at  once  send  $5  to  C.  W.  Hawes,  Head  Clerk, 
Fulton,  Illinois,  for  a  set  of  deputy's  supplies.  He  should 
then  make  a  list  of  the  towns  in  his  district  that  have  no 
Gamps,  and  also  a  list  of  the  Camps  that  need  re-organiz- 
ing and  building  up.  After  he  has  carefully  mapped  out 
his  field  of  operations  he  is  ready  to  go  systematically  to 
work. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


239 


Fourth.  The  deputy  should  make  himself  familiar  with 
the  ritual  and  the  Fundamental  Laws,  and  the  practical 
workings  of  the  Camp.  He  should  read  carefully  all 
official  reports,  and  the  monthly  official  paper,  so  as  to 
familiarize  himself  with  the  workings  of  the  order. 

Fifth.  A  new  Camp  can  not  be  organized  without  at 
least  ten  applicants  on  a  petition  for  charter,  and  a  char- 
ter fee  of  not  less  than  $100  must  be  collected  by  the 
deputy.  In  no  case  shall  the  adoption  fee  be  less  than  $5 
for  each  applicant,  and  must  in  each  case  be  enough  from 
each  applicant  so  that  the  aggregate  sum  collected  from 
the  charter  petitioners  shall  be  $100.  The  Deputy  shall 
make  a  statement  to  the  Head  Clerk  when  he  sends  him 
a  petition  for  charter  of  how  much  is  paid  to  the  Deput}" 
as  an  adoption  fee  by  each  applicant.  All  sums  collected 
by  the  Deputy  in  excess  of  $100  shall  remain  in  the  local 
Camp  treasury.  The  applicant  shall  in  each  case,  in  ad- 
dition to  the  adoption  fee,  pay  the  fee  required  by  the 
local  physician  and  twenty-five  cents  as  the  Head  Physi- 
cian's fee. 

Sixth.  When  a  Deputy  goes  into  a  town  to  organize  a 
new  Camp,  he  should  get  acquainted  first  with  the  lead- 
ing men  of  the  town,  and  obtain  as  many  of  them  on  his 
petition  for  charter  as  possible.  If  the  list  is  headed  by 
prominent  men,  the  rest  of  the  work  will  be  compara- 
tively easy.  After  the  Deputy  has  completed  his  petition 
for  charter,  and  has  as  many  as  ten  names  on  the  same 
and  has  collected  from  the  applicants  the  charter  fee  of 
$100,  he  should  have  the  applicants  examined  by  any 
reputable  physician,  and  forward  the  applications  with  a 
fee  of  twenty-five  cents  each  to  the  Head  Physician  of 
his  territory.  In  his  letter  to  the  Head  Physician  ac- 
companying these  applications  he  should  ask  him  to 
notify  the  Deputy  at  once  as  to  who  are  accepted  and  who 
rejected,  so  that  the  Deputy  may  know  who  are  eligible 
to  office  in  the  local  Camp  before  the  benefit  certificates 


240 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


have  arrived.  The  Head  Physician  forwards  the  accepted 
applications  to  the  Head  Clerk,  who  thereupon  issues  a 
benefit  certificate  upon  each  ;  this  requires  some  little 
time,  and  it  is  a  satisfaction  to  the  Deputy  to  hear  at 
once  from  the  Head  Physician  as  to  what  applicants  are 
accepted.  As  soon  as  the  Deputy  knows  that  he  has  at 
least  ten  accepted  applicants,  he  will  send  the  petition  for 
charter,  together  with  $10  charter  fee,  to  the  Head  Clerk. 
The  Head  Clerk  will  then  forward  charter,  supplies,  and 
certificates  to  the  Deputy,  who  is  now  ready  to  organize 
the  Camp.  A  meeting  night  is  appointed  and  the  appli- 
cants notified  ;  a  ballot  is  taken  upon  all  applicants  at  once, 
each  applicant  being  permitted  to  vote  ;  if  three  black 
balls  are  not  cast  they  are  all  elected  ;  if  three  black  balls 
are  cast  in  this  general  ballot,  then  separate  ballots  must 
be  taken  on  each  applicant.  As  soon  as  the  balloting  is 
over  the  Deputy  gives  all  of  the  applicants  the  obligation, 
and  instructs  them  in  the  secret  and  general  work  of  the 
Camp.  The  officers  are  then  elected  and  instructed  in 
the  use  of  the  Ritual,  how  to  open  and  close  the  Camp, 
etc.  The  Deputy  should  instruct  the  officers  of  the 
Camp  as  to  their  respective  duties,  being  particular 
to  instruct  the  local  Clerk  how  to  keep  his  books  and  con- 
duct his  correspondence  with  the  Head  Clerk.  As  soon 
as  the  Camp  is  organized  the  Deputy  should  send  to  the 
Head  Clerk  a  roster  of  the  local  Camp  officers. 

Seventh.  A  Deputy  Head  Consul  has  no  authority  to 
work  for  an  old  Camp,  unless  requested  to  do  so  by  the 
Camp,  and  is  paid  such  compensation  for  his  work  as  is 
agreed  upon  betw^een  him  and  the  old  Camp.  This  agree- 
ment should  be  clearly  expressed  in  a  resolution  adopted 
by  a  majority  vote  of  the  Camp  at  a  regular  meeting.  It 
is  customary  for  the  Camp  to  allow  the  Deputy  the  en- 
tire adoption  fee  of  $5  for  each  new  member  he  adds  to 
the  Camp.  In  working  for  the  old  Camp  the  Deputy 
should  have  each  application  signed  by  two  Neighbors  of 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


241 


the  Camp  recommending  the  applicant,  and  the  applica- 
tion must  be  referred  to  the  usual  committee  and  the 
usual  proceedings  had  as  in  all  cases  of  new  application 
for  membership  in  an  old  Camp. 

Eighth.  The  Head  Clerk  has  entire  charge  of  the  sup- 
ply department,  and  the  Deputies  will  be  governed  by 
the  rules  and  regulations  of  his  office.  With  the  charter 
the  Head  Clerk  furnishes  certain  supplies  to  the  Camp, 
but  these  are  not  sufficient  for  the  proper  working  of  the 
Camp,  and  the  Deputy  should  instruct  the  Camp  to  order 
and  pay  for  from  the  funds  in  the  Camp  treasury  the  ad- 
ditional supplies  that  are  necessary  for  the  proper  work- 
ing of  the  Camp.  The  Deputy  should  have  with  him  a 
catalogue  of  supplies  and  prices,  which  will  be  furnished 
by  the  Head  Clerk. 

Ninth.  Wherever  the  Deputy  finds  a  defunct  Camp  he 
should  take  up  the  charter,  ritual,  and  all  supplies,  and 
forward  them  to  the  Head  Clerk.  If  possible,  he  should 
endeavor  to  organize  an  entirely  new  Camp  in  the  town, 
sending  the  charter  fee  of  $10  to  the  Head  Clerk  and 
proceeding  as  though  no  Camp  had  ever  existed,  except 
that  should  there  be  any  of  the  old  members  of  the  de- 
funct Camp  who  desire  to  join  the  new  Camp,  he  will 
send  their  names  to  the  Head  Consul,  who  will  grant  a 
dispensation,  permitting  them  to  join  upon  the  same 
terms  and  conditions  as  new  members,  and  they  will  pay 
the  same  fee  ;  and  in  all  these  cases  the  old  benefit  cer- 
tificate must  either  be  surrendered,  or,  if  lost  or  destroyed, 
a  waiver  signed  by  the  applicant.  The  Deputy  should 
keep  on  hand  the  necessary  blanks,  waivers  of  lost  cer- 
tificates, small-pox  waivers,  etc. 

Tenth.  The  Deputy  should  be  careful  in  every  case  to 
see  that  the  application  blanks  are  properly  filled,  par- 
ticularly noting  that  the  name  of  the  applicant  is  written 
plainly  and  in  full,  that  the  beneficiary  is  properly  de- 
scribed and  the  name  plainly  written  and  in  full  ;  ihw. 


242 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh, 


last  is  of  vital  importance,  and  the  Deputy  can  not  be  too 
careful  in  the  matter.  The  Deputy  should  be  present 
when  the  examination  is  made  by  the  physician,  and 
should  see  that  all  requirements  are  fully  met  by  him  in 
making  the  examination  ;  and  especially  that  the  neces- 
sary analysis  is  properly  made.  The  Deputy  should  note 
carefully  the  family  history  of  the  applicant,  and  other 
points  in  his  examination,  and  if  he  believes  he  is  not  a 
proper  risk  he  should  at  once  inform  the  applicant  and 
not  forward  his  application.  In  every  case  where  an  ap- 
plicant is  rejected  the  Deputy  must  return  to  him  the 
adoption  fee  paid  ;  but  the  applicant  does  not  have  the 
physician's  fees  returned  to  him. 

Eleventh.  The  Deputies  must  on  Monday  of  each  week 
fill  out,  on  blanks  prepared  and  furnished  by  the  Head 
Consul  or  State  Deputy,  weekly  reports  to  them.  This 
must  be  insisted  upon,  as  it  is  necessary  for  the  Head 
Consul  and  State  Deputy  to  be  informed  of  the  work  of 
the  Deputy,  and  every  blank  in  the  report  must  be  filled. 

Twelfth.  All  commissions  are  subject  to  revocation  at 
the  will  of  the  Head  Consul  or  State  Deputy.  The  fact 
that  a  deputy  has  knowingly  received  an  applicant  of  im- 
paired health,  or  wilfull}^  misrepresented  the  intentions 
of  the  Fundamental  Laws  of  the  order  to  any  Neighbor 
or  applicant,  or  shall  fail  to  return  to  a  rejected  applicant 
the  adoption  fee  paid  by  him,  or  fail  to  make  weekly  re- 
ports as  above  required,  shall  be  good  cause  for  removal, 
and  create  a  liability  on  the  bond  of  the  Deputy. 

Thirteenth.  A  Camp  of  Modern  Woodmen  of  America 
is  a  public  benefit  to  the  community  in  which  it  is  organ- 
ized, and  the  Deputy  should  impress  upon  the  leading 
citizens  the  necessity  of  their  co-operating  with  him  in 
his  work.  A  society  which  enables  men  without  fortune 
and  who  are  dependent  upon  their  exertions  for  a  living 
to  provide  small  estates  for  their  families,  which  in  case 
of  their  death  might  otherwise  be  dependent  upon  public 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


243 


charity,  should  receive  the  support  of  all  good  citizens. 
Time  used  in  getting  the  order  properly  before  the  promi- 
nent men  of  the  town  and  in  getting  their  co-operation 
will  always  recompense  the  Deputy. 

,  Fourteenth.  A  Deputy  should  never  enter  into  contro- 
versies with  other  societies  or  organizations  where  it  can 
be  avoided.  Explaining  the  many  good  points  of  the 
Modern  Woodmen  of  America  should  fully  occupy  his 
time,  to  the  exclusion  of  anything  like  abuse  or  disparage- 
ment of  other  societies.  A  Deputy  must  always  be 
careful  to  solicit  no  applicant  who  is  not  sound  physi- 
cally and  is  not  an  eligible  risk.  He  should  always  be 
particular  in  his  statements  and  representations,  remem- 
bering that  the  good  name  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of 
America  should  never  suffer  by  any  misconduct  on  his 
part,  and  he  should  always  keep  good  faith  in  his  trans- 
actions with  Camps  and  members. 


The  ''Modern  Woodman.'' 

By  general  J.  X.  REECE,  Director. 


The  ''Modern  Woodman"  is  the  official  organ  of  this 
order.  The  position  it  occupies  in  our  fraternity  is  one 
of  very  great  importance  to  its  members.  Through  its 
columns  not  only  are  the  principles  of  our  fraternity 
spread,  the  people  educated  and  enlightened,  but  through 
its  columns  comes  to  us  that  which  is  of  far  more  im- 
portance, the  Official  Notice  "  informing  us  that  the  time 
has  arrived  for  us  to  perform  the  sacred  duty  of  contribut- 
ing a  small  sum  for  the  benefit  of  the  beneficiaries  of 
loved  Neighbors  whose  membership  has  been  transferred 
from"  earthly  Camps  to  the  eternal  Camp  on  the  other 
shore. 


244 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


This  paper  is  the  medium  of  communicating  officially 
with  each  and  every  Neighbor  ;  for  this  purpose  its  value 
cannot  be  estimated.  Under  the  law  it  is  essential,  as  it 
is  the  only  means  provided  for  giving  notice  of  assess- 
ments to  members.  • 

The  prompt  payment  of  assessments  is  necessary  to 
keep  the  Neighbors  in  good  standing  and  their  benefit 
certificates  in  force. 

It  is,  therefore,  important  that  these  notices  reach  all 
the  members. 

The  Head  Camp,  in  its  wisdom,  decided  at  its  last 
meeting  that  the  notice  of  assessments  should  be  pub- 
lished in  this  our  monthly  official  paper,  and  that  the 
publication  and  the  mailing  of  a  copy  thereof  to  each 
member,  addressed  to  him  at  the  last  postoffice  address 
furnished  by  him  to  the  Head  Clerk,  shall  be  conclusive 
evidence  of  notice  to  each  member  of  such  assessment, 
and  that  each  has  received  a  copy  of  such  paper  in  due  time 

In  order  that  these  provisions  may  be  carried  into 
efi'ect,  it  is  farther  provided  and  made  the  duty  of  each 
Neighbor  to  furnish  to  the  Head  Clerk  his  nnino  and 
postoffice  address. 

It,  then,  must  be  apparent  to  each  and  every  Neighbor 
that  the  entire  responsibility  of  furnishing  the  Head 
Clerk  their  correct  names  and  postoffice  address  rests 
solely  with  them.  It  has  been  well  said  that  the  ^'  Clerk 
is  the  Camp."  The  duty  of  furnishing  the  Head  Clerk 
the  names  and  postoffice  address  of  the  Neighbors  may, 
therefore,  be  safely  assigned  to  the  Clerk.  The  law,  how- 
ever, is  mandatory,  and  the  Neighbors  are  charged  with 
the  duty  of  seeing  that  this  information  is  furnished. 

The  Head  Clerk  has  placed  in  charge  of  the  "  mailing 
department  "  a  practical  printer,  a  gentleman  of  experi- 
ence in  this  class  of  work.  This  official  is  charged  with 
the  duty  of  preparing  the  mailing  list,  Avhich  shows  the 
names,  postoffice  address,  and  the  number  of  the  Camp 


The  Woodman'' s  Hand-Booh. 


245 


of  each  Neighbor,  all  of  which  is  arranged  by  states. 
This  list  is  corrected  monthly,  showing  the  changes  of 
location  as  reported  by  members  ;  also  the  addition  of  the 
names  of  new  members  received  during  the  month. 

All  Neighbors  will  at  once  understand  the  full  meaning 
of  tliis  law,  and  agree  th^t  upon  them  rests  the  obligation 
to  furnish  the  necessary  information,  in  order  that  there 
may  be  a  full  compliance  with  its  requirements.  Any 
failure  on  the  part  of  the  Neighbors  to  carry  into  effect 
these  provisions  of  the  Fundamental  Law  cannot  be  made 
chargeable  to  the  Head  Clerk. 

The  Neigtibors  having  recognized  their  obligation  under 
the  law,  the  future  will  determine  whether  they  have  per- 
formed that  duty  according  to  the  law. 

This  paper,  in  addition  to  being  the  official  channel  of 
communication,  is  an  important  factor  in  holding  together 
and  increasing  the  growth  of  the  order.  It  is  also  an 
educator,  and  teaches  us  to  have  Faith  —  that  faith  whicli 
addresses  itself  to  man's  whole  being,  and  sounds  every 
depth  of  his  soul,  and  stretches  itself  over  humanity. 

It  teaches  us  that  Hope  is  necessary  in  every  condition 
of  life  ;  that  without  hope  the  miseries  of  poverty,  of 
sickness,  and  the  trials  of  this  life  would  be  insupportable. 

It  teaches  the  Neighbor  how  to  practice  Charity  —  that 
which  is  the  constant  companion  and  perfection  of  all 
virtues  ;  and  teaches  that  it  is  in  every  man's  power 
sometimes  to  practice  charity. 

It  teaches  Patience,  which  is  the  guardian  of  faith,  the 
preserver  of  peace,  the  cherisher  of  love,  the  teacher  of 
humility. 

It  teaches  Economy,  the  parent  of  integrity,  liberty,  and 
ease,  and  the  beauteous  sister  of  temperance,  cheerfulness, 
and  health. 

It  teaches  Prudence,  which  is  the  combination  of  wis- 
dom, reason,  discretion,  and  common  sense,  the  offspring 
of  a  clear  head,  a  correct  judgment,  and  a  good  heart. 


246 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


It  teaches  Temperance,  that  virtue  without  pride  and 
fortune  without  envy,  the  best  guardian  of  youth  and  the 
support  of  old  age,  the  tutelar  goddess  of  health  and 
universal  medicine  of  life. 

It  teaches  that  Fraternity  which  brings  men  into  closer 
social  relations  ;  that  makes  them  more  thoughtful  and 
helpful ;  that  expands  the  sentiments  of  Faith,  Hope, 
Charity,  Patience,  Economy,  Prudence,  and  Temperance. 

It  teaches  the  religion  that  breaks  bread  to  the  hungr}^ 
gives  a  cup  of  water  to  the  thirsty,  that  watches  at  the 
bed  of  the  sick,  that  visits  and  cares  for  the  fatherless  and 
the  widowed. 

And,  above  all,  it  teaches  us  that  duty  is  based  upon  a 
sense  of  justice  ;  that  justice  is  inspired  by  love,  and  is 
the  most  perfect  form  of  goodness.  It  tea.ches  us  that 
duty  is  not  a  sentiment,  but  a  principle  pervading  life, 
and  exhibits  itself  in  conduct  and  in  acts. 

It  teaches  that  it  is  the  upholding  law  through  which 
the  weakest  become  strong,  without  which  all  strength  is 
as  unstable  as  water  ;  that  no  character,  however  har- 
moniously formed  and  gloriously  gifted,  can  be  complete 
without  this  abiding  principle. 


The  New  Ritual 

By  W.  a.  NORTflCOTT,  Head  Consul. 


To  revise  and  change  a  Ritual  which  has  been  for  so 
many  years  a  vital  part  of  Woodcraft,  and  around  which 
clusters  the  earliest  and  best  memories  of  our  order,  and 
which  is  to-day  used  by  more  than  one  hundred  thousand 
Woodmen,  is  a  work  to  be  approached  with  a  full  sense 
of  responsibility.  The  introduction  of  this  revised  Ritual 
and  its  successful  substitution  for  the  old  one  is  an  almost 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


247 


herculean  task.  I  am  constrained  to  undertake  this  work 
only  in  obedience  to  the  commands  of  the  Head  Camp. 
In  the  .performance  of  this  task  I  have  preserved  the 
"busy  mart "  scene,  the  grand  and  imposing  lectures, 
and  the  beautiful  and  impressive  burial  service  of  the 
old  Ritual.  In  the  years. to  come  these  will  be  like  monu- 
ments reminding  the  Woodmen  who  come  after  us  of  the 
history  of  the  early  struggles  and  achievements  at  the 
cradle  of  Woodcraft  — 

"  See  how  far  that  little  candle  throws  its  beams  ; 
So  shines  a  good  deed  in  a  naughty  world." 

The  strength  and  beauty  of  ritualistic  work  depends 
not  so  much  upon  the  Ritual  itself  as  the  manner  in 
which  it  is  rendered.  Any  ceremony  becomes  stale  and 
unprofitable  when  read  by  the  officers  ;  the  great  neces- 
sity for  the  complete  rendition  of  the  work  is  for  each 
officer  to  commit  his  part  and  deliver  it  from  memory. 
Each  Camp  should  select  a  good  team  and  have  it  thor- 
oughly drilled.  The  cost  of  the  paraphernalia  used  in 
this  Ritual  is  so  small  as  to  be  within  the  reach  of  every 
Camp. 

I  desire  to  thank  the  Ritual  Committee,  the  Head 
Clerk,  and  Board  of  Directors  for  their  many  valuable 
suggestions.  The  idea  of  using  the  Foresters,  with  their 
marching  and  songs,  was  first  conceived  in  seeing  the 
work  done  by  Camp  No.  566,  of  Hutchinson,  Kansas. 
To  Dr.  A.  0.  Faulkner,  of  Lincoln,  Nebraska,  is  due  the 
credit  of  many  valuable  suggestions. 

We  must  grow  as  a  fraternity.  We  will  soon  become 
the  largest  society  in  the  northwest ;  we  must  be  the 
greatest  in  fraternal  spirit.  I  hope  this  new  Ritual  may 
be  a  step  toward  the  improvement  of  the  fraternal 
feature  of  our  order.  Next  to  home  and  to  country,  the 
Modern  Woodmen  of  America  is  first  in  the  hearts  of 
its  members.    Woodcraft  is  the  product  of  the  noonday 


248 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


of  civilization.  It  must  be  great,  or  it  would  not  be  so 
lifted  up  in  the  hearts  of  the  greatest  people  of  this 
the  greatest  of  all  ages. 

We  must  see  that  the  great  destiny  of  our  order  is  ful- 
filled. We  must  look  into  the  future,  and  our  develop- 
ment must  keep  pace  with  the  march  of  time.  We  are 
building  a  structure  that  will  some  day  afford  protection 
to  the  homes  of  a  million  of  freemen,  living  in  that  great 
territory  which  reaches  from  the  shores  of  the  ^'unsalted 
seas  "  westward  to  where  California's  brooks  wash  down 
their  sands  of  gold. 

I  dedicate  my  humble  work  in  this  behalf  to  the  fra^ 
ternal  spirit  of  Woodcraft. 


Cheapest  and  Best. 

By  J.  G.  JOHNSOIS,  Directoe. 


There  is  a  Chicago  firm  which  advertises  in  reference 
to  its  goods,  "  not  how  cheap,  but  how  good."  The  prin- 
ciple of  selection  therein  suggested  is  worthy  the  con- 
sideration of  every  man,  whether  the  article  to  which  it 
is  to  be  applied  is  candy  or  life  insurance. 

The  old-line  life  insurance  companies  reiterate  this  sug- 
gestion at  every  turn,  "  not  how  cheap,  but  how  good." 
They  tell  us  that  the  only  question  worthy  of  considera- 
tion is,  "  are  a  company's  contracts  to  be  relied  upon  ?  " 
and  that  the  question  of  cost  cuts  no  figure  in  the  calcu- 
lation. 

This  argument  passed  unchallenged  until  a  few  years 
ago,  when  some  enterprising  investigator  discovered  that 
of  all  the  companies  organized  on  the  old-line  plan,  more 
than  nine-tenths  had  gone  into  liquidation  and  had  utterly 
failed  to  carry  out  their  contracts. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


249 


When  this  became  known  prudent  men  began  turning 
to  the  fraternal  societies,  and  a  similar  investigation  dis- 
closed .the  fact  that  no  fraternal  society  organized  on  the 
lines  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  or  other  kindred  orders  had 
ever  failed  to  carry  out  its  contracts  to  the  letter.  Thus 
it  has  come  to  pass  that  fraternal  insurance  has  become 
the  popular  form  of  life  insurance,  and  is  patronized  by 
all,  both  on  account  of  its  thorough  reliability  and  its  low 
cost. 

It  is  not  too  cheap,  obviously,  because  its  cost  to  the 
member  is  the  exact  cost  of  the  indemnity  promised,  still, 
it  is  paid  in  such  small  sums  and  at  such  intervals  that 
the  poorest  man,  if  industrious  and  saving,,  rarely  feels 
its  cost  as  a  burden.  It  could  not  be  more  reliable,  as  it 
has  behind  every  contract  the  plighted  faith  and  the 
financial  ability  of  every  member  of  the  order,  exactly 
the  same  security  that  is  behind  a  government  bond. 

As  between  fraternal  orders  and  old-line  insurance,  then, 
there  is  no  question  as  to  which  is  ^'cheapest  and  best." 
When  we  come  to  ask  the  same  question  as  to  tlie  various 
fraternities,  we  meet  a  more  difficult  problem.  There  are 
many  which  have  stood  the  test  of  time,  have  buffetted 
the  waves  of  adversity,  have  triumphed  over  difficulties, 
and  stand  to-day  monuments  of  wise  management  and 
great  achievement,  having  records  written  in  heaven  and 
in  the  hearts  of  grateful  beneficiaries,  and  we  would  not 
willingly  take  from  such  an  iota  of  the  credit  due  to  their 
great  achievements,  or  detract  in  any  way  from  the  evi- 
dent results  of  their  wise  management. 

But  among  successful  fraternities  there  can  be,  and  are, 
some  which  contain  in  the  plan  of  their  organization 
elements  and  ideas  which  promise  not  only  present,  but 
permanent  success,  and  among  such  societies  it  is  believed 
the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  stands  pre-eminent. 

It  is  now  in  its  tenth  year,  and  still  has  never  yet 
reached  what  is  generally  considered  the  minimum  num- 


250 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Booh. 


ber  of  assessments,  viz  :  twelve  annually,  its  highest  num- 
ber being  eleven.  This,  we  think,  is  unprecedented  for 
an  order  numbering  nearly  eighty  thousand  members,  and 
easily  stamps  the  Modern  Woodmen  as  the  cheapest  among 
the  leading  fraternal  orders.  Any  one  can  easily  verify 
this  claim  by  comparing  the  cost  of  his  insurance  in  our 
order  with  the  cost  of  a  similar  amount  in  any  of  the 
large  fraternities.  In  this  society  ^'  double-headers  "  are 
practically  unknown,  but  one  having  been  called  in  the 
history  of  the  order,  and  that  several  years  ago. 

We  claim  that  the  Modern  Woodmen  is  not  only  the 
cheapest,  but  the  best,  on  the  theory  that  that  society  is  the 
best  which  is  not  only  cheapest  now,  but  which  can  be 
shown  to  be  so  organized  that  it  will  ahvays  be  the  cheapest. 

In  support  of  this  theory  we  point  to  the  salient  features 
of  our  organization,  every  one  of  which  is  a  guarantee  of 
the  future  continuous  low  cost  of  the  insurance  w^e  offer. 

First.  The  graded  assessment,  which  favors,  financially, 
young  men,  attracting  such,  and  thus  keeping  the  aver- 
age age  of  our  membership  low,  with  a  consequent  low 
death  rate. 

Second.  Our  maximum  age,  forty-five,  and  $3,000  cer- 
tificates being  restricted  to  persons  below  forty-one,  aiding 
in  the  attainment  of  the  result  mentioned  above. 

Third.  Selected  risks,  men  in  specially  hazardous  oc- 
cupations being  declined  as  members,  thus  avoiding  many 
accidental  death  claims,  and  placing  all  members  upon  an 
equality  of  risk,  as  nearly  as  may  be. 

Fourth.  Selected  territory,  the  business  of  the  order 
being  restricted  to  the  healthy  northwestern  states,  and 
the  large  cities  and  unhealthy  districts  in  even  this 
selected  territory  being  barred,  thus  giving  us  practically 
a  ''country"  jurisdiction,  with  its  comparatively  low 
death  rate  and  undoubted  security  from  epidemics  and 
the  ordinary  contagious  diseases. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh, 


251 


Fifth.  Economical  management,  the  tax  for  general 
management  being  the  lowest  known,  and  the  treasury 
showing  a  surpUis  of  more  than  $60,000. 

The  above  principles  and  policies  are  fixed,  are  em- 
bodied in  our  laws,  and  eno^rafted  on  our  management, 
and  are  tlierefore  permanent,  and  in  the  permanence  of 
those  things  which  go  to  guarantee  the  low  cost  of  the 
protection  we  ofi'er  is  found  the  unanswerable  argument 
in  favor  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  being  not 
only  the  cheapest  but  the  best  fraternal  benefit  society  in 
existence. 


Record  of  Bene£t  Certi£cates. 


Year. 

In  Force 
Beainni?}^ 
of  Year. 

Issued  Dur- 
ing Year. 

ToiaL 

Di-scontin  li- 
ed hy  >H.«- 
pen-rion. 

Discontinu- 
ed hy  Death. 

In  Force  at 
1    Close  of 
Yeo.r. 

1883  

562 

562 

bfS-2 

1884  

562 

7SS 

1.350 

'  76 

2 

1.272 

1885  

1.272 

3.694 

4.966 

391 

6 

4.569 

1886  ' 

'  4.-569 

4.706 

9.275 

9-54 

22 

8.299 

1887  

8,299 

8.139 

16.438 

1.112 

40 

15.28(5 

1888  

15,286 

11.943 

27.229 

2,164 

85 

24.980 

1889  i 

,  24.980 

17.950 

42.930 

3,283 

100 

39,547 

1890  

39.547 

12.354 

51.901 

8.991 

216 

42.694 

1891  

42,694 

14.34S 

57.(342 

4.671 

286 

52.08-5 

1892  

52.085 

25.139 

77.224 

4.251 

329 

72,644 

1893  

72.644  . 

24.385 

97.029 

S.355 

451 

88,223 

Grand  totals 

124.008 

34.245 

1.537 

SS.223 

RECAPnrXATIOX. 

Total  number  of  certificates  issued  from  January  5th,  1SS3, 

to  December  31st,  1893   124,008 

Total  number  of  suspensions  34,248 

Total  number  of  deaths   1.537 

  35.785 


Total  number  of  certificates  in  force  December  31st.  1893,  88.223 


252 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


Amount. 

$  351,000 
680,000 
1,080,000 
1,534,000 
1,881,500 
2,655,000 
3,'246|500 
3,615,000 
4,466,600 
4,965,000 
5,318,000 
5,493,000 
6,278,500 
6,945,500 
7,469,000 
8,045,000 
8,299,500 
8,178,000 
8,053,500 
8,163,000 
7,724,000 
7,655,500 
7,482,000 
7,182,500 
6,358,500 
6,330,500 
6,588,000 
6,093,000 
4,571,000 
4,175,000 
3,955,000 
3,910,000 

Ill 
JM 

1—)  r— t  t— 1  CM  v-N  Cn  Cn  QQ  CQ  CQ       CQ  CQ  CQ  CO  CQ  CO  CO  CO  Cn  CM  CO  CM  Gn  rH  i— i  r-l 

Certificates 
Decreased 

1 

Deaths. 

Amou7ii. 

1 

i 

spensions. 

Amount. 

$  4,000 
61,000 
148,500 
239,500 
334,000 
446,500 
519,000 
563,500 
510,000 
704,500 
638.000 
650,000 
725,500 
802,000 
817,000 
754,000 
843,000 
786,000 
735,000 
634,000 
671,500 
551,000 
592,000 
593,000 
468,500 
438,500 
469,000 
395,000 
376,000 
287,000 
234,000 
194,000 

CO 

it 

1 

HiiiiiiiiliiiiliiM^^ 

i 

I 

ililillllliililiiliM 

< 

i 

Amount. 

$  356,000 
531,000 
707,500 
979,500 
1,197,000 
1,480,000 
1,596,500 
1,699,500 
1,912,500 
1,997,500 
2,167,000 
1,874,000 
2,304,500 
2,190,500 
2,272,000 
2,523,000 
2,291,500 
2,297,500 
2,175,500 
2,242,000 
1,935,500 
2,029,500 
1,914,000 
1,668,500 
1,456,000 
1,476,000 
1,540,000 
1,213,000 
207,000 
204,000 
181,000 
155,000 

i 

ecember  Slst, 
•dred  Age 
m,  1893). 

1 

213,000 
525.000 
798,000 
1,019,000 
1,625,000 
2!  168!  000 
2,490,000 
3,059,000 
3,658,000 
3,759,000 
4,258,000 
4,670,000 
5,538,000 
5,975,000 
6,263,000 
6,836,000 
6,640,000 
6,581,000 
6,525,000 
6,430,000 
6,178,000 
6,142,000 
6,104,000 
5,371,000 
5,301,000 
5,543,000 
5,279,000 
4,760,000 
4,264,000 
4,029,000 
3,960,000 

il 

1 

iSiSHiiiisiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii 

9 

i 

as 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh.  253 


3,008,000 
3,032,000 
2,460,000 

122i000 
64,000 
54,000 
42,000 
55,000 
21,000 
33,000 
14,000 
15,000 
16,000 
10,000 
2,000 

1,000 
1,000 

.  .S184.133.500 

CO.  : 

"1: 

22,000 
27,000 
22,000 
12,000 
15,000 
18  000 
8^000 
5,000 
3,000 
2,000 
2,000 

4,666 
5,666 

2,000 
2,000 

T-l -TJ  O  I>  C- r-l  CO            iH  i-H     -(M     -(Mi-H     \     \  \ 

-si 

1  $16,883,500 

Sltg^S^S^^^^  :  :^  :::       ::::::  :   |  : 

10,000 
11,000 
2,000 
'  7,000 
4,000 
6,000 



2,000 

1  $591, 000 

:  :  33 

§::::::::::::::::::::::::  8 

i"! 

88  ::::::::::::::::::::::  :  8  ^ 

....:....:.:::::::::::  :   ^  ^ 

i| 

^\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  %l 

3,001,000 
3,110,000 
2,609,000 
1,999,000 
1,659,000 
1,248,000 
884  000 
605,'000 
305,000 
129,000 
66,000 
54,000 
48,000 
55,000 
26,000 
35,000 
14,000 
17,000 
16,000 
12,000 
2,000 

1,000 
1,000 

$151,857,000 
Insurance : 

-1 

254 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


PS 

o 

I 

•S 


puvff  uo  70a" 


6uun(j  sdsu9d 


6uun(j 
smivid  fi}} 

-iiqhsia  moi 

puv  iitma  ptvd 


■J,VdX  fO  9S020 

'punj;  iv.omQ 


dva^l  6uun(j 
moj,f  pdapody; 


JLm^l  Buun(j 

SfU9lUSS9SSy 

mojf  pdapod^ 


puvff  uo  •jvg' 

PU71J  ?D^9Wa£) 


•.(09,^  fO 

puDff  'uo  7»a" 
punj  ipuds 


§1111111 


Isllppl 


^ilillil 


^iillllll 


iiilll 


iisisip 


1 


I 


I 


1^ 


II 


1^ 


sju'Bmi'Bxo  •ojs[ 


SJUBIUT'BXO  "OK 


a  . 


1^ 


iOOO(Mi-(COLOOOiOtOOiC 


)  O  S  O  O  ' 


'Ocoiooooooco 

-w^OOCOOr-HOOOOCD 
O  1^  CO  00  OS  03  (JDOS  O  O  O^O^CO 

(N  l-H 


1  (M  (N  DO  05  (M 


8  : 


8 

o 

"1^  I 


I  ^  I 


t^'oT  ■   ■  co'c^r 


I  ^  I 


>  CO  O  Q  o  o  o  o 
)  r-i  O  o  o  o  o  o 
■  Tfi  lO  lO  O  O  O  uO 


1^  I 


CO  CO  r-l  i-H 


'  8  S  lo 

'  O  C^I 

'.  im'co'cd" 


IS  I 


oooooo 

O  O  Q  O  O  Q 
lO  lO  O  lO  lO  o 


1^ 


o  o  o  o  •  o  o  o 

r-l  O  lO_0_    .  O  lO  lO 


)  lO  T-H      05  lO  c 

(^^olo -N c<r    rH  CO 

CO  lO      T-l      1-1  r-l  <M 


:  IS  i 


8SS  I  8 


CO  O  05  CO  CO  CO  i>  ■ 


•M     •  rH  r-l 


!  O  I  lO 
1^1    I  ?5 


CU  O  gj  c 

o  C  w  !^  . 


The  WoodmaTi's  Hand-Booh, 


•mdw  0001 
Co  d9qmn^ 


'S68T  PVOd 
smwjQ 


O  O  O  c 

ass? 


TO  l-H  I 


:SSS 

o  o  o 


r-coToooooiccqooiMCJ 


oooooooooo 

oooooooooo 
oooooooooo 
oooooooooo 


^  «0  ^  ^  O  CO      CO  ■ 


lOOiOOOOOiOlOO 

OOiCOOOSlOOKXM-* 
i-HiO.— lOOCnCTSO^OaOl 

oTooo'o"  o'"o"i-rco~io"r-r 

a>C5C5  CO  rHCOl-l  <M 


•96'F 


CO  CO  CO  CO  CO  ( 


'S681  diys 


•uwo  fo 


COCTiOCOin'MOOiOCOOO 
O  1^  O  lO  lO  1^  O       <0  CO 
•MOOOcoeOOT-HCOiOiM 
COCXJOl'-OCOr-l  (M 
CO  T-H  1-1 


^C^CJi-IO^COtOl^CM 


S6f?T 
uwo  phi 


lOOloOLOC^OCscOt^ 
-    1^  X  «5  lO  O  O  1^  C^I 

 i  lO  i-l  ^  «o 


ic.     C5  CO  c-i  as  1 


10  l-H  i-H  6-) 


I>  Ift  CD       00  •M 

.-I  o  uo  CO  2 

00  -t<  1>  CO  o  ^ 

as  as  r-(i-i  CO 


^  CC'  O  CO  ?I 


■>Ot-fOCOOiO(N(N 

<  00  1^     CO  CO     CO  01 

)  (M  X  -f      IM  i-l 


......  o  o  :•  • 

Jgiili^^iil 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


257 


Roster  of  Officers  of  the  Modern  Woodmen 
of  America,  i8g4. 


'ROSTER  OF  HEAD  OFFICERS. 

Head  Consul  — WlUA AM  A.  NORTHCOTT,  Greenville,  111. 
Head  Adviser  — mn AM.  C.  HEDGES,  Lansing-,  Mich. 
Head  C/erfc  — CHARLES  W.  HAWES,  Pulton,  111. 
Head  Banker —  BAYIB  C.  ZINK,  Grand  Island,  Neb. 
Head  Physician  — FRA^^K  SWALLOW,  Valley  Falls,  Kas. 
Head  Physician— ISAAC  L.  POTTER,  Ackley,  Iowa. 
Head  Physician  — C.  A.  McCOLLOM,  Minneapolis,  Minn. 
Head  Chaplain— WEN .  P.  P.  FARMELOE,  Genoa,  111. 
Head  Escort  — W.  H.  DAWSON,  Slayton,  Minn. 
Head  TFa^cTiman— EUGENE  C.  BURKHART,  Mexico,  Mo. 
Head  Sentry —  'LJjmK  E.  MENTCH,  Carey,  111. 


BOARD  OP  DIRECTORS. 

A.  R.  Talbot,  Chairman^  Lincoln,  Neb. 
J.  W.  White,  Rock  Palls,  111. 

C.  T.  Heydecker,  Waukegan,  111. 

J.  G.  Johnson,  Peabody,  Kas. 

J.  N.  Reece,  Spring-field,  111. 


AUDITING  COMMITTEE. 

H.  O.  Larrabee,  Chairman,  Winona,  Minn. 
Humphrey  Pierce,  Appleton,  Wis. 

Perry  Perkins,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 


COMMITTEE  ON  RITUAL  AND  REVISION  OP  LAWS,  1892. 

Dr.  E.  R.  Hutchins,  Chairman,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 
Gen.  J.  N.  Reece,  Springfield,  111. 

Judge  A.  M.  Cavan,  El  Paso,  111. 


COMMITTEE  ON  CREDENTIALS,  1892. 

Marvin  Quackenbush,  Chairman,  Dundee,  111. 
A.  H.  HOLLISTER,  Madison,  Wis. 

J.  H.  E.  Weigant,  Leavenworth,  Kas. 


17 


258  The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 

Commissioned  Deputy  Head  Consuls, 

Revised  to  April  i8tb,  1895. 


ILLINOIS. 


State  Deputy  Head  Consul. 
W.  A.  RODENBERG,  120  North  Main  Street,  East  St.  Louis. 
Deputies. 

J.  B.  Martin,  Aurora.  C.  T.  Ray,  Rockford. 

J.  S.  Grim,  Knoxville.  J.  S.  Fendley,  Danville. 

E.  A.  Van  Zandt,  Peoria.  F.  B.  Easterly,  Decatur. 

H.  D.  Foltz,  Delay.  E.  E.  Combs,  Mulberry  Grove. 

E.  W.  Rupert,  Greenville.  C.  H.  Hay,  Carmi. 

William  B.  Bradsby,  Greenville. 


IOWA. 

State  Deputy  Head  Consul. 
J.  R.  Carrothers,  511  Mulberry  Street,  Des  Moines. 
Deputies. 

G.  L.  Williams,  Winterset.  F.  R.  Clark,  Red  Oak. 

Frederick  Hewitt,  Sioux  City.  George  B.  Albert,  Marshalltown 
C.  C.  Ayres,  Agency.  J.  A.  Wood,  Brush  Creek. 

Smith  Parmenter,  Jamaica.  B.  E.  Lyke,  Britt. 

Edward  Werner,  Dubuque.  F.  B.  Jewell,  Washington. 

C.  A.  Morris,  Webster  City.  S.  Adelsheim,  Sioux  City. 

J.  A.  Leyda,  Muscatine.  C.  S.  Brayton,  Davenport. 


KANSAS. 

State  Deputy  Head  Consul. 
Joseph  B.  Thoburn,  Peabody. 
Deputies. 

P.  J.  Strack,  Junction  City.  Morgan  Caraway,  Great  Bend. 

R.  P.  Bennett,  White  City.  H.  Retschlag,  Emporia. 

P.  G.  Chubbic,  Beloit.  J.  W.  Paramore,  Topeka. 

W.  S.  WoUard,  York,  Neb.  J.  W.  Kaiser,  Fort  Scott. 

Charles  F*  Guyer,  Wichita. 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


259 


NORTH  DAKOTA. 


State  Deputy  Head  Consul. 
C.  L.  Ward,  Ellendale. 
Deputies. 


John  Courtney,  Ellendale. 
W.  H.  Smith,  Dunseith. 
W.  A.  White,  Ellendale. 
J.  E.  Aznoe,  Grand  Forks. 
R.  W.  Simmons,  Lisbon. 
J.  H.  Howard,  Fairmount. 

SOUTH  DAKOTA 


George  H.  Tweed,  Jamestown. 
James  Barnett,  Grand  Forks. 
N.  H.  Bjornstad,  Ellendale. 
Charles  L.  Brown,  Oakes. 
Fred.  M.  Kendall,  Frederick,  S.  D. 


State  Deputy  Head  Consul. 
F.  R.  Van  Slyke,  Madison. 


Deputies. 


Harry  DeLeray,  Deadwood. 
Charles  Christiansen,  Vilas. 
J.  M.  Johnson,  Garden  City. 
W.  M.  Hicks,'Frederick. 
John  C.  Smith,  Madison. 
A.  R.  Jamison,  Elk  Point. 
W.  E.  Ege,  Center  ville. 
A.  E.  Fuller,  Mitchell. 


W.  L.  Harris,  Bristol. 

Ira  Wright,  Clark. 

E.  I.  Bunker,  Frederick. 

Dr.  W.  A.  Bentley,  Gary. 

L.  J.  Corcoran,  Madison. 

Charles  H.  Roberts,  Madison. 

E.  C.  Dennis,  Frederick. 


E.  E.  Faulkner,  Lincoln. 

F.  A.  Chidester,  Aurora. 
D.  L.  Corkins,  Cordova. 
George  Schoettler,  Fall  City. 
F.  O.  Fritz,  Exeter. 


NEBRASKA. 
State  Deputy  Head  Consul. 
Dr.  a.  O.  Faulkner,  Lincoln. 
Deputies. 

John  Small,  Lincoln. 

B.  A.  Ward,  York. 

C.  S.  Hull,  Lexington. 
G.  J.  Frost,  Emerson, 


MICHIGAN. 

State  Deputy  Head  Consul. 
C.  D.  Sharrow,  Grand  Rapids. 
Deputies. 


Charles  J.  Byrns,  Ishpeming. 
W.  W.  Thomas,  Grand  Rapids. 
Bert  Fairchild,  Hastings. 
J.  D.  Malcolm,  Grand  Rapids. 
F.  A.  Reynolds,  Ionia. 
C.  H.  Brown,  Buchanan. 


F.  E.  Moore,  Jackson. 
Joseph  Dellon,  Grand  Rapids. 
Rev.  John  Ambrose,  Fremont. 
E.  S.  Jelly,  Bangor. 
W.  T.  Norris,  Albion. 
H.  W.  Grover,  Buchanan. 


260 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book . 


MINNESOTA. 


,    ',  State  Deputy  Head  Consul. 

W.  H.  Dawson,  Slayton. 
Deputies. 

F.  B.  Campbell,  618  E.  19th  St.,      A.  Corbit,  Amboy. 

Minneapolis. 
A.  W.  Gregg,  Plainview. 
C.  E.  Berry,  Fergus  Falls. 
C.  C.  Hatchard,  Lake  Benton. 
E.  M.  Tousley,  Howard  Lake. 
George  R.  Lawrence,  Rush  City. 


R.  A.  Mullenger,  518  E.  3d  St., 
Duluth. 

J.  Fe  Paige,  Waseca. 
W.  A.  Case,  Warren. 
T.  D.  Quaintance,  Slayton 


WISCONSIN. 
State  Deputy  Head  Consul. 
T.  H.  Love,  417  E.  Mifflin  Street,  Madison. 


Deputies. 


W.  E.  Hewes,  Delavan. 
W.  P.  Fanning,  Madison. 
D.  P.  Crabbe,  Eau  Claire. 
T.  B.  Philpott,  Loyal. 
S.  A.  Walker,  Neillsville. 
R.  L.  Love,  Madison. 
Henry  Haejner,  Menomonie. 


A.  G.  Haines,  Merrimac. 

A.  M.  Blynn,  Mazomanie. 
J.  H.  Welch,  64  N.  12::h  St., 

Minneapolis. 

B.  F.  Keeler,  Bagley. 
A.  J.  Brown,  Lodi. 


MISSOURI. 
State  Deputy  Head  Consul. 
D.  I.  Thornton,  2013  Olive  Street,  Kansas  City. 
Deputies. 


E.  C.  Burkhart,  Mexico. 

C.  H.  Adams,  614  N.  13th  St., 

Quincy,  111. 
Frank  Roybar,  Windsor. 
H.  D.  Easterly,  1802  E.  16th  St., 

Kansas  City. 


J.  H.  Dunkleberg,  Cuba. 

B.  L.  Foster,  1707  Forest  Ave., 

Kansas  City. 
W.  S.  Smith,  Lee  Summit. 
John  W.  Martin,  Versailles. 


* 


History  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of 
America. 


L      Root,  of  Lyons,  Iowa,  the  first 
Camp  being  instituted  in  that 
1^  city  on  January  5th,  1883.  This 
day  may  be  regarded  as  the 
birthday  of  the  order.    Its  early 


HE  Modern  Woodmen  of  America 
was  founded  by  Joseph  Cullen 


history  cannot  be  better  written 
than  by  quoting  the  language  of  its  founder  : 

The  history  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  dates, 
for  its  beginning,  back  to  the  year  1880. 

Neighbor  Root  had  been  identified  with  two  fraternal 
benefit  orders  that  were  confined  to  the  State  of  Iowa. 
He  was  the  principal  officer  of  one,  and  had  been  Grand 
Treasurer  of  the  other,  and  was  a  member  of  several 
others.  Feeling  a  deep  interest  in  the  noble  designs  of 
institutions  of  this  character,  and  having  been  interested 
in  life  insurance  as  an  agent  and  patron  of  several  of  the 
leading  life  insurance  companies,  he  made  it  a  subject  of 
investigation,  in  which  he  was  greatly  aided  by  his  prac- 
tical experience  for  several  years  in  the  insurance  busi- 
ness. 

The  yellow  fever  epidemic  in  the  south  had  cost  na- 
tional institutions  hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars,  and 
climatic  diseases  in  certain  portions  of  the  land  had 
caused  losses  in  excess  of  that  experienced  in  the  great 
states  of  the  northwest.  His  actual  experience  in  insti- 
tutions confined  to  one  state  had  also  satisfied  him  that 


264  ,  The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


limits  too  circumscribed  were  a  bar  to  tlie  best  selection 
of  risks,  from  a  life  insurance  standpoint,  but  that  an 
organization  could  be  devised  which,  if  confined  within 
reasonable  limits  as  to  territory,  could  choose  its  ground, 
and  by  establishing  subordinate  branches  in  towns  of 
reasonable  size,  the  selection  of  preferred  members  could 
be  made  a  jDractical  success. 

He  did  not,  however,  strike  the  real  key-note  of  terri- 
tory at  first,  as  he  only  excluded  those  states  south  of  the 
imaginary  Mason  and  Dixon's  line. 

The  more  he  thought  of  the  theory  he  had  evolved, 
the  more  ambitious  he  became  to  demonstrate  its  utility. 
His  daily  labor  in  directing  the  work  of  the  state  fra- 
ternity of  which  he  was  the  head  kept  the  subject  more 
vividly  in  his  mind  until  he  determined  to  make  the 
effort  to  establish  a  secret  society  that  should  reflect  his 
theories. 

Months  passed  away  ;  for  this  impulse  or  inspiration 
dates  back  into  1880  or  ]881.  He  conversed  with  others, 
and  cautiously  advanced  his  arguments  in  favor  of  a  re- 
stricted, but  not  a  state,  institution.  In  his  annual  report 
to  his  society  he  advised  entering  other  states,  but  re- 
ceived little  or  no  encouragement.  The  seeds  of  seces- 
sion were  so  thoroughly  planted  in  the  minds  of  the 
Workmen  of  the  State  of  Iowa  that  restricted  state  juris- 
diction was  advocated  and  preached  in  every  lodge-room 
of  every  fraternal  order  in  the  state. 

We  liave  read  of  the  tulip  mania  in  Belgium,  when 
the  whole  countr}^  went  mad  over  the  value  of  tulip  bulbs, 
and  many  lavislied  whole  fortunes  for  the  possession  of  a 
variet;/,  until  the  tidal  wave  passed,  leaving  ruin  and 
despair  in  its  train,  but  it  seemed  no  more  in  earnest  or 
unreasonable  than  the  craze  in  Iowa  to  desert  and 
separate  from  every  life  benefit  order  that  had  a  jurisdic- 
tion extending  beyond  the  borders  of  the  Hawkeye 
State." 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book, 


265 


Despairing  of  making  any  progress  with  a  new  fraternal 
society  that  did  not  have  the  name  of  the  one  state  only 
inscribed  on  its  banners,  the  originator  of  the  Modern 
Woodmen  op  America  cast  his  anxious  eyes  across  the 
great  river  into  the  state  of  Illinois  —  that  field  of  beauty, 
rich  in  its  productions  of  grand  men  and  broad  ideas.  It 
was  in  that  state  he  expected  to  receive  encoiiragement 
for  his  project,  and  in  this  he  has  not  been  disappointed. 

Having  determined  upon  creating  the  fabric,  the  next 
question  was,  what  shall  be  its  form,  shape,  and  name  ? 
Various  conceptions  of  a  form  of  ceremonies  came  to 
mind,  but  every  one  lacked  newness  or  originality.  In 
one.  Odd  Fellowship  suggested  the  idea,  in  another  Ma- 
sonry had  already  conceived  the  form,  the  test,  the  cere- 
mony. In  that  treasure-house  of  ancient  mystery,  the 
magic  numbers  and  mystic  symbols  of  Pythagoras,  the 
rose  cross  of  Rosencreutz,  the  grand  Eleusinian  rites,  the 
exoteric  and  esoteric  doctrines  of  Greece,  and  the  Dyo- 
nysian  ceremonies  had  been  studied  by  generations  of 
master  minds,  to  add  to  the  knowledge  of  the  ancient 
craft  the  wisdom  and  the  inventions  of  hundreds  of  years' 
experience  in  secret  work  designed  to  impress  men  by 
the  grandeur  of  its  exemplification  of  noble  truths  by 
symbolic  ceremonials  and  dramatic  spectacles,  requiring 
a  keen  mind,  a  bright  intellect,  and  a  manly  courage  to 
enter  and  remain  within  its  inner  vale.  The  lessons  of 
that  immortal  drama  of  Damon  and  Pythias  were  re- 
called, with  its  God-like  lessons  of  friendship,  self-devo- 
tion, and  self-sacrifice,  but  another  pretentious  order  had 
already  made  use  of  that. 

Thus  it  became  to  the  willing  mind,  ready  to  devise  a 
ritual,  a  confusion  of  scenes,  teachings,  and  ideas  that 
were  needed  to  formulate  his  conception  of  that  which 
was  necessary  for  an  order  which  he  hoped  and  believed, 
if  properly  prepared  and  panoplied,  would  commend 


266 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


itself  to  the  judgment  of  practical  men,  when  their  atten- 
tion should  be  called  to  it. 

To  select  a  name  was  a  puzzling  problem  to  solve. 
Being  naturally  self-reliant,  and  seldom  seeking  or  accept- 
ing suggestions  in  matters  of  the  most  importance  to 
himself,  the  author  had  little  patience  witli  others  when 
they  proposed  names  for  the  new  child  soon  to  be  intro- 
duced into  the  world.  The  words  "  Knights,"  Sons," 
and  ''  Brotherhood,"  seemed  to  be  in  the  minds  of  all  of 
his  immediate  friends  ;  and  the  word  ''Ancient"  carried 
a  falsehood  upon  its  face,  for  nothing  bearing  its  name 
appears  to  be  venerable  in  any  sense.  The  word  "  Royal " 
haunted  him  in  his  dreams,  and  in  his  waking  moments 
"  Arcana  "  confronted  him  as  if  posted  upon  every  bill- 
board. Names  seemed  to  be  chasing  him  about  like  the 
little  "  Brownies  "  so  graphicalh^  pictured  in  the  children's 
magazines,  until  one  Sunday  in  July,  1882,  while  listen- 
ing to  a  sermon  being  delivered  by  Rev.  Sidney  Craw- 
ford, at  the  First  Congregational  churcli,  in  Lyons,  he 
spoke  of  the  "Woodmen  clearing  away  the  forests." 

It  was  like  the  appearance  of  a  rainbow  of  beauty  and 
promise  after  a  shower.  The  Gordian  knot  was  cut  ;  the 
anxiety  experienced  in  the  search  for  a  name  seemed  to 
pass  away  like  a  dream  ;  cool  and  refreshing  shade  ap- 
peared to  his  imagination  ;  purling  brooks,  the  twitter  of 
birds,  the  drumming  and  humming  sound  of  wild  fowl 
flying  to  its  cover,  the  buzzing  of  bees,  the  fleet  retreat 
of  the  squirrels  up  the  tree  ;  the  crushing,  rattling  sound 
of  decayed  branches  and  dry  leaves  under  the  hoofs  of 
the  cattle  wandering  through  the  trees  crunching  the 
succulent,  green  leaf  from  the  lower  limbs;  the  "caw," 
"caw"  of  the  raven,  and  the  hammering  of  the  wood- 
pecker, all  suggested  a  scene  of  happiness,  promise,  and 
peace  ! 

Then  the  scene  changed  :  The  trees  looked  like  great 
sentinels  with  a  background  of  white,  their  great  stripped 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


267 


boughs  and  branches  were  moving,  bending,  and  the 
wind  sighing  a  requiem  to  the  departed  foliage  of  which 
winter's  .  frost  had  robbed  the  forest.  A  tiny  line  of 
smoke  outlined  itself  between  the  trees,  and  in  a  clearing 
was  the  rude  cottage  of  a  woodman.  Voices  came  to  the 
ear.  It  was  the  driver's  commands  to  his  cattle,  that  soon 
appeared  to  view,  dragging  a  great  log  to  the  mill.  The 
clear  atmosphere  brought  the  sounds  of  cutting,  as  the 
keen  blade  in  the  lusty  hands  of  the  woodmen  struck 
the  green,  live  wood  of  the  tree.  Soon  a  rushing,  crash- 
ing, crackling  sound  was  heard,  and  the  old  sentinel  of 
many  decades  falls  prostrate  into  the  soft  bed  of  snow, 
ready  to  be  trimmed,  and  sawed,  and  split  with  the  axe, 
beetle,  and  wedge,  for  use  in  the  world's  economy  ;  pro- 
viding to  man  comfort  in  the  shelter  and  w^armth  which 
it  affords  after  it  has  passed  through  the  hands  of  willing 
and  industrious  men. 

Locke  once  wrote  that  :  In  this  retirement  of  the 
mind  from  the  senses,  it  retains  a  yet  more  incoherent 
manner  of  thinking,  which  we  call  dreaming." 

So  the  name  was  selected  after  weeks  of  thought  upon 
the  subject,  at  a  time  Avhen  one  would  least  expect  to 
have  decided  so  momentous  a  question. 

The  name  so  suggestive  of  useful  employment,  of  a 
noble  avocation,  for  all  labor  is  honorable  —  even  more  ; 
is  commendable  —  and  stamps  upon  every  laborer  the  seal 
of  self  reliance  and  honesty.  It  suggests  health,  vigor, 
and  life.  It  was  a  new  name  for  a  fraternal  organization, 
and,  therefore,  "  Modern."  It  was  native  to  the  soil  of 
this  land,  so  wdiat  could  be  more  appropriate  than  to 
add  of  America  ?  "  As  the  good  people  passed  down 
the  '  aisles,  nodding  pleasantly  to  acquaintances,  and 
staring  good-naturedly,  with  a  puzzled  air,  in  the  direc- 
tion of  any  stranger  that  might  have  dropped  in,  they 
little  dreamed  that  the  author  of  our  ritual  was  tri- 
umphantly repeating  the  words,    Modern  Woodmen  of 


268 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh, 


America,"  over  and  over  again  in  Lis  mind,  and  each 
time  wondering  how  strangely  it  sounded,  but  how  har- 
moniously it  seemed  to  jingle. 

For  the  next  three  or  four  days  he  was  in  danger  of 
getting  as  much  bewitched  with  it  as  Mark  Twain  was 
with  his  Pink  Trip  Slip  —  punch  in  the  presence  of 
the  Passenjare  "  jingle  of  Avhicli  we  have  all  heard. 

The  name  being  settled  upon,  the  next  thing  was  the 
preparation  of  the  ritual.  In  this  the  author  sought  no 
suggestions  or  advice.  For  days  and  weeks  he  hunted 
through  old  and  antiquated  books,  whose  lids  had  not  been 
opened  for  years,  seeking  for  some  historical  basis  upon 
which  to  fashion  a  ritual  that  would  be  unlike  any  other 
in  existence.  Since  then  a  person  once  wrote  to  the 
author  that  he  did  not  like  the  ritual  ;  that  it  lacked  life 
and  dash,  etc.  The  author  promptly  wrote  to  his  cor- 
respondent that  he  presumed  it  was  so,  and  would  he  not 
please  write  a  ritual  that  would  be  an  improvement  ? 
At  last  accounts  the  better  ritual,  "  full  of  life  and 
dash,"  had  not  yet  arrived.  If  the  gentleman  ever  under- 
took the  task,  it  would  take  him  but  a  short  time  to  dis- 
cover that  it  was  no  easy  matter  to  prepare  ceremonies 
having  originality  or  dramatic  excellence. 

After  months  of  consideration  the  author  finally  set- 
tled upon  tlie  general  outlines  of  the  ritual.  It  was  a 
skeleton  in  liis  mind  when  he  seated  himself  at  his  desk 
at  No.  33  Main  street,  Lyons,  Iowa,  and  proceeded  to 
commit  to  paper  his  ceremony  of  adoption,  which,  how- 
ever, at  that  time  he  called  initiation." 

He  devoted  two  or  three  days  to  the  work.  As  he  com- 
pleted each  part  it  was  read  to  A.  T.  Wheeler,  an  attorne}^ 
who  occupied  an  office  with  the  author  ;  and  when  fin- 
ished it  was  also  read  to  Samuel  Davy  and  Lewis  G. 
Blaine,  and  no  changes  were  suggested  by  either.  The 
opening  and  closing  ceremonies  and  installation  service 
were  also  written  during  the  week,  and  after  changing  a 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Book. 


269 


word  here  and  there  the  manuscript  was  sent  to  C.  B. 
Dorr,  the  printer,  at  Dubuque,  Iowa. 

The  author  in  his  ritual  had  two  or  three  ideas  that 
he  wished  to  permeate  it.  One  was  that  the  objection 
that  was  raised  against  some  secret  societies  of  ]3eing  a 
semi-religious  body  should  not  be  pertinent  to  the  Modern 
Woodmen  of  America. 

The  belief  of  an  applicant  in  matters  of  Diety  or  re- 
ligion has  no  bearing  upon  the  objects  of  Woodcraft  as 
defined  in  the  ritual.  The  fact  that  he  is  a  moral  man, 
of  temperate  habits  and  good  physical  and  mental  con- 
dition, are  all  the  pre-requisites  of  a  useful  member. 

The  fraternity  should  not  arrogate  to  itself  to  select 
the  Christian  and  reject  the  unbeliever,  or  to  favor  the 
republican  and  frown  upon  the  democrat.  If  a  man  has 
no  regard  for  the  bible,  he  should  not  be  required  to  in- 
sult its  sacredness  in  the  eyes  of  his  venerating  neighbor 
by  refusing  to  be  obligated  upon  it.  So  it  were  better  to 
dispense  with  such  a  requirement.  *  *  *  The  doors 
are  then  left  open  to  the  Jew  and  Gentile,  the  Catholic 
and  Protestant  ;  men  of  whatever  nationality  can  meet 
upon  its  broad  and  liberal  platform  as  adopted  sons  and 
neighbors  who  may  be  at  variance  upon  every  other  sub- 
ject, but  are  a  unit  in  their  obligations  to  help  the  de- 
pendent ones  of  those  who  are  stricken  by  death. 

It  was  six  months  later  that  the  funeral  and  burial  ser- 
vices were  prepared  and  published  in  the  second  edition 
of  the  ritual.  The  first  time  that  these  services  were 
used  was  while  it  was  still  in  manuscript,  at  Oakland 
cemetery,  in  Lyons,  Iowa,  at  the  grave  of  John  Ott,  on 
Sunday,  July  1st,  1883.  He  was  a  member  of  another 
society  that  had  no  funeral  or  burial  ceremony,  and  the 
new  service  was  used  by  substituting  the  name  of  that 
organization.  The  next  day  a  prominent  clergyman 
commended  it  in  lavish  praise,  and  a  worthy  gentleman, 
who  is  a  pronounced  liberal  thinker,  said  it  was  the 


270 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Booh. 


most  appropriate  and  sensible  service  that  he  had 
ever  listened  to. 

Its  comnoendation  from  two  such  adverse,  yet  fair- 
minded,  gentlemen  was  encouraging,  to  say  the  least,  and 
five  years  time  has  yet  failed  to  call  to  our  attention  a 
solitary  adverse  criticism  upon  the  same. 

The  ritual  having  gone  to  the  printer,  a  circular  was 
prepared  and  sent  to  Mtc  Carroll,  Illinois,  to  be  printed. 

%  ^  Hi  %  %  % 

It  was  not  until  November,  1882,  that  any  progress  was 
made  in  establishing  Camps.  It  was  then  that  Lewis  G. 
Blaine  circulated  the  first  Petition  for  Charter "  at 
Lyons,  Iowa,  and  on  January  5th,  1883,  Pioneer  Camp, 
No.  1,  was  instituted,  with  the  following  members  present : 

J.  C.  Poot,  L.  G.  Blaine,  J.  C.  Hopkins,  J.  K.  P.  Balch, 
A.  Hilton,  William  Fields,  Charles  W.  Sibley,  E.  Lukens, 
William  A.  Penn,  Martin  Aikey,  A.  Marshall,  H.  Frazier? 
M.  O'Hara,  C.  D.  Scott,  C.  Newcomer,  Dr.  L.  H.  Knis- 
kern,  M.  Pudman,  Henry  Penn,  Joe  Messmer,  Dr.  J.  A. 
McArthur,  S.  H.  Stebbins. 

The  author  of  the  ritual,  J.  C.  Poot,  obligated  all 
present,  instructed  tbem  in  the  work,  and  Pioneer  Camp 
was  organized  as  the  provisional  Head  Camp  and  as  its 
first  local  Camp. 

J.  C.  Root  was  elected  Head  Consul,  Lewis  G.  Blaine, 
Head  Banker,  and  Albert  Hilton,  Head  Clerk,  to  serve 
until  the  first  Head  Camp  should  convene. 

Pioneer  Camp,  No.  1,  elected  as  its  first  officers  : 

Venerable  Consul — J.  C.  Root. 
Worthy  Adviser  —  Harrison  Frazier. 
Excellent  Banker  —  William  Fields. 
Clerk — Albert  Hilton. 
Escort — Charles  W.  Sibley. 
Watchman  —  Martin  Aikey. 
Sentry  —  M.  Pud  man. 
Managers  —  Joe  Messmer,  E.  Lukens, 
C.  D.  Scott. 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Book. 


271 


The  Head  Consul  installed  the  officers,  and  the  first 
Camp  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  had  a  name 
and  an  existence.  Only  twenty-seven  men,  of  whom 
tw^enty-one  were  present,  constituted  a  small  beginning, 
but  the  majority  of  them  were  confident  that  success 
would  ultimately  crown  the  efforts  of  its  officers  to  make 
it  a  household  word  in  the  healthy  states  of  the  north- 
west before  many  years  should  roll  by. 

Seventeen  of  the  original  members  are  still  in  good 
standing  ;  not  one  at  this  writing  has  died  from  Pioneer 
Camp,  No.  1. 

As  we  look  back  only  six  years  ago,  we  cannot  help 
wondering  what  it  was  that  induced  these  men  to  lend 
their  names,  influence,  and  personal  efforts  to  an,  institu- 
tion that  had  simply  a  name  and  ritual,  but  no  members. 
No  especial  urging  was  necessary  to  interest  them,  but 
they  seemed  to  realize  that  the  time  had  come  when  a 
movement  upon  a  sensible  plan  w^ould  succeed.  Nearly 
all  were  members  of  other  fraternal  benefit  orders  and 
had  some  knowledge  of  the  benefit  to  themselves  and 
helpfulness  to  others  that  they  supplied.  They  were  all 
men  of  generous  impulses.  Stingy  men  would  count  the 
cost  and  estimate  the  advantage  from  a  purely  selfish 
standpoint  before  investing  any  money  or  giving  any  time 
to  a  new  and  perhaps  uncertain  venture. 

As  time  ripens  aud  broadens  the  mission  of  our  noble 
order,  these  men  will  become  historic  characters  whose 
names  will  have  about  them  a  lustre  of  modest  light  that 
will  command  honor  and  homage  from  hundreds  who 
have  been  blessed  by  the  bounties  of  the  great  order  they 
aided  in  establishing. 

The  second  Camp  was  established  at  Fulton,  Illinois, 
through  the  eff'orts  of  Thomas  L.  Taggert,  a  personal 
friend  of  the  Head  Consul.  His  first  convert  was  Dr. 
Henry  M.  Kennedy,  the  present  Head  Clerk.  The  meet- 
ing to  institute  the  Camp  was  held  in  the  basement  of 


272 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


the  Baptist  Church.  On  the  evening  of  the  10th  day  of 
February,  1883,  the  Head  Consul,  accompanied  by  L.  G. 
Blaine,  C.  D.  Scott,  A.  Marshall,  A.  Hilton,  H.  Frazier, 
Harry  Evans,  and  William  Fields,  walked  over  the  Mis- 
sissippi river  on  the  ice,  and  met  the  following  persons 
at  the  place  mentioned  :  T.  L.  Taggert,  H.  M.  Kennedy, 
M.  D.,  L.  Barber,  P.  J.  Bennett,  W.  J.  Carlyle,  G.  AY.  Ma- 
thers, C.  Grimes,  W.  E.  Martin,  0.  Park,  J.  W.  Hulbert, 
and  William  Bailey.  At  this  writing  seven  of  those 
named  are  still  in  good  standing.  The  objects,  aims,  and 
prospects  of  the  proposed  fraternity  were  fully  explained, 
and  the  fact  that  the  entire  membership  was  less  than 
thirty  was  discussed.  All  present,  excepting  one  who 
retired,  decided  to  accept  it  and  cast  their  fortunes  with 
the  order.  The  neighbors  from  Pioneer  Camp,  No.  1, 
aided  the  Head  Consul  in  adopting  them  in  a  A^ery  primi- 
tive but  none  the  less  effective  way.  There  was  a  dim, 
religious  light  "  in  the  poorly-lighted  apartments  ;  the  low 
ceiling  and  numerous  posts  made  the  room  seem  cramped 
and  contracted.  It  reminded  us  of  the  dark  caverns  so 
graphically  described  in  a  book  we  recently  read,  that 
were  used  hundreds  of  years  ago  in  which  to  confer  the 
degrees  of  the  most  ancient  of  secret  rites.  An  ivory 
door  upon  hinges  of  gold  opening  suddenh^  in  the  solid 
wall,  the  candidate  was  dazzled  and  almost  struck  blind 
for  a  moment  by  the  brilliancy  of  the  light,  and  behold  ! 
he  saw  seated  in  groups  tlie  priests  of  Isis,  clothed  in 
magnificent  costumes  and  decorated  with  badges  of  honor 
and  distinction.  The  humble  profane  "  who  came  to 
the  scantily-furnished  basement  in  Fulton  that  night  saw 
no  ivory  door  upon  hinges  of  gold  ready  to  open  when 
the  command  was  given,  and  all  the  light  "  that  their 
anxious  eyes  beheld  was  the  dim  lamps  and  the  printed 
ritual.  The  information  communicated  by  the  Head 
Consul  was  also  light  "  shed  upon  the  mysteries  of  the 
new  order. 


II 


3-S 


fDtE 


D  H 

o  • 


O 
2 


P  • 

^3 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


273 


It  being  decided  to  practice  upon  one  of  the  applicants 
the  ceremony  of  adoption,  a  volunteer  was  called  for. 
The  great  brawny  fellows  all  held  back,  but  a  wiry  little 
fellow  with  sparkling  dark  eyes,  that  sometimes  look  black 
as  a  thunder  cloud,  and  at  other  times  are  brown,  gervtle, 
and  reflective  in  expression,  stepped  forward,  a  willing 
victim  to  endure  any  ordeal  that  the  Iowa  strangers  might 
have  ready  for  him.  He  was  the  smallest  man  upon  the 
charter  petition,  but  like  the  majority  of  little  men  (of 
which  the  first  Napoleon  was  a  notable  example),  he 
lacked  not  in  the  bravery  necessary  to  be  first  tested  by 
the  gauge  of  Woodcraft. 

This  self-sacrificing  gentleman  was  Dr.  Henry  M.  Ken- 
nedy. He  survived  the  hardships  of  the  evening,  and 
has  ever  since  been  as  ready  and  willing  to  offer  himself 
as  a  victim  upon  the  altar  of  Woodcraft  as  he  was  upon 
his  first  introduction  into  its  inner  chamber. 

The  next  Camp  instituted  was  Ivanhoe,  No.  7,  at  Lanark, 
Illinois.  The  number  7  was  given  to  this  Camp,  for  the 
reason  that  correspondents  in  other  localities  had  promised 
to  organize  Camps,  and  numbers  were  assigned  to  them, 
but  they  all  failed  to  materialize,  and  the  numbers  3,  4, 
5,  and  6  were  afterwards  given  to  Camps  instituted  by 
deputies. 

The  days  of  its  infancy  have  passed  away  forever  — 
the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  is  now  in  vigorous 
youth,  endowed  with  all  the  stamina,  strength,  and  virtue 
that  it  may  require  to  insure  to  it  a  longevity  and 
perennial  existence. 

W^oodcraft  now  has  a  name  and  place  in  the  world's 
history.  Its  teachings  influence  for  good.  It  inculcates 
charity  and  care  for  the  dependent  ones.  In  this  it  will 
benefit  every  mind  as  well  as  carry  comforts  and  educa- 
tion to  the  widow  and  the  fatherless.    Some  of  its  votaries 


18 


274 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


are  passing  every  month  into  that  sleep  that  knows  no 
earthly  waking  ;  it  affords  a  solace  to  the  dying,  comfort 
to  the  bereaved,  and  discipline  to  the  surviving  members. 
Heaven's  richest  blessing  cannot  fail  of  being  conferred 
upon  an  order  so  worthy  thereof. 


Story  of  the  Proofs. 


Death  No.  1. —  Neighbor  Ab.  Mayer,  died  July  14th, 
1884,  at  Davenport,  Iowa.  He  w^as  five,  feet  four  inches 
tall,  black  hair,  hazel  eyes,  and  resembled  his  mother. 
Was  recommended  by  Junior  Deputy  Maltby  and  J.  P. 
Crawford,  M.  D.  He  died  from  indiscretion  in  eating 
confectionery,  ice  cream,  etc.,  on  the  4th  of  July,  with 
the  incident  excitement  and  heat.  He  was  known  as  a 
reliable  salesman  of  average  good  health,  but  had  been 
subject  to  dyspepsia  occasionally.  He  sleeps  at  Pine 
Hill  cemetery  —  the  first  Woodman  that  leads  the  van  to 
the  vastless  beyond. 

Death  No.  2. —  Neighbor  Cephas  Hurless,  a  farmer, 
died  November  14th,  1884,  of  disease  of  the  kidneys  and 
inflammatory  rheumatism;  resulting  as  a  complication  of 
the  latter  affection  was  valvular  disease  of  the  heart. 
He  was  born  in  Holmes  county,  Ohio,  1827,  and  resided 
in  Whiteside  county,  111.,  over  thirty  years.  He  was  a 
prominent  citizen.  Dr.  G.  W.  Remage  says  :  There 
had  never  been  any  heart  complication  in  his  case  prior 
to  this  attack."  He  was  recommended  by  0.  H.  Hender- 
son, Senior  Deputy.  His  last  resting-place  is  Hazel 
Green  cemetery,  in  Geneseo  township,  Whiteside  county, 
Illinois. 

Death  No.  3. —  Neighbor  W.  H.  Becker  died  Decem- 
ber 22d,  1884,    of  acute  rheumatism,  complicated  with 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh.  275 


metastasis  of  the  brain."  Was  first  taken  sick  December 
11th.  Was  recommended  by  Deputy  Maltby  and  Dr.  W. 
A.  McDowell.  Was  five  feet  eleven  inches  tall,  erect, 
black  hair  and  eyes,  and  resembled  his  father.  Was  a 
dealer  in  agricultural  implements,  and  highly  respected' 
in  his  Camp  and  city.  His  grave  is  in  the  city  cemetery, 
at  Rockford,  111. 

Death  No.  4. —  Neighbor  William  Foy,  a  sturdy  car- 
penter, a  native  of  Ohio,  died  January  26th,  1885.  He 
was  six  feet  tall,  of  erect  figure,  brown  eyes,  and  hair 
gray,  and  resembled  his  father;  was  recommended  by  W. 
R.  Trottler,  M.  D.,  and  Deputy  Maltby.  His  wife  received 
$1,000,  the  full  amount  of  his  certificate,  in  a  few  days 
after  his  death.  With  this  money  she  has  erected  a  hand- 
some cottage  home,  and  says  that  upon  it  should  be  in- 
scribed :  A  home  to  the  thankful.  A  gift  from  the 
Modern  Woodmen  of  America." 

Death  No.  5. —  Neighbor  Ziba  A.  Trull,  a  druggist; 
five  feet  nine  inches  tall,  with  auburn  hair  and  blue  eyes; 
resembled  his  father.  Recommended  by  Deputy  Maltby 
and  Dr.  C.  H.  Latham.  In  tlie  proofs  it  is  said  that  he 
had  not  had  any  serious  sickness  for  twelve  years.  At 
that  time  he  had  an  attack  of  remittent  fever  that  had  no 
bearing  upon  the  cause  of  death.  Was  taken  sick  Janu- 
ary 7th,  and  died  February  3d,  1885,  of  gastro  enteritis. 
He  dropped  a  $5,000  certificate  in  another  organization 
to  take  a  $3,000  certificate  in  the  Woodmen.  He  was  a 
member  of  the  Workmen,  Galesburg  Odd  Fellows,  and 
American  Legion.  Lysander  cemetery,  near  Pecatonica, 
111.,  is  his  resting-place. 


276 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


Head  Camps  Modern  Woodmen  of  America. 


The  Head  Camps  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America 
have  convened  as  follows  : 

First  Provisional  at  Lyons,  Iowa,  January  5th, 
1883. —  Those  present  were  Joseph  C.  Root,  J.  C.  Hop- 
kins, J.  K.  P.  Balch,  L.  G.  Blaine,  Albert  Hilton,  William 
Fields,  C.  W.  Sibley,  E.  Lukens,  William  A.  Penn,  Mar- 
tin Aikey,  A.  Marshall,  Harrison  Frazier,  M.  O'Hara,  C. 
Newcomer,  L.  H.  Kniskern,  S.  H.  Stebbins,  M.  Rudman, 
Henry  Penn,  Joe  Messmer,  J.  A.  Mc Arthur,  and  C.  D. 
Scott. 

Provisional  Head  Officers  were  elected  as  follows  : 

Head  Consul  —  Joseph  C.  Root. 
Banker  —  Lewis  G.  Blaine. 
C^er^^  — Albert  Hilton. 

The  officers-elect  were  constituted  an  Executive  Com- 
mittee with  all  the  powers  of  the  Head  Camp  to  do  what- 
ever in  their  judgment  seemed  proper  and  necessary  to 
propagate  the  order. 

Adjourned  subject  to  the  call  of  the  Head  Consul. 


Second  Regular. —  At  Fulton,  Illinois,  June  28th, 
1883,  the  following  named  Camps  being  represented  by 
delegates  : 

Pioneer,  No.  1,  Lyons,  Iowa,  four  delegates  ;  Forest, 
No.  2,  Fulton,  Illinois,  four  delegates  ;  Ivanhoe,  No.  7, 
Lanark,  Illinois,  two  delegates  ;  Excelsior,  No.  8,  Mt.  Car- 
roll, Illinois,  three  delegates  ;  Tampico,  No.  9,  Tampico, 
Illinois,  two  delegates. 

The  following  named  Head  Officers  were  elected  to 
serve  one  year : 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


'Ill 


Head  Consul  —  Joseph  C.  Root,  Lyons,  Iowa. 
Banker  —  A.  M.  Green,  Mt.  Carroll,  111. 
Clerk  —  Arthur  Hilton,  Lyons,  Iowa. 
Physician  —  H.  M.  Kennedy,  Fulton,  111. 

-   r  C.  C.  Farmer,  Mt.  Carroll,  111. 
Managers —  <  S.  H.  Zimmerman,  Polo,  111. 

(  J.  J.  Ward,  Sterling,  111. 

At  this  session  the  original  Fundamental  Laws  were 
adopted. 

Section  A,"  Division  "  I,"  provided  that  applicants 
for  membership  must  be  over  eighteen  and  under  sixty- 
five  years  of  age. 

Section  F,"  Division  "  I,"  provided  that  persons 
desiring  to  participate  in  the  benefit  fund  of  the  fra- 
;jrnity  could  do  so  upon  the  recommendation  of  a  neigh- 
bor and  the  payment  of  $5  to  the  Head  Clerk,  first  sub- 
mitting to  an  examination  by  a  reputable  physician,  and 
approval  thereof  by  the  Head  Physician.  Thus  author- 
izing and  establishing  the  Independent  Camp. 


Third  Session  —  Convened  at  Fulton,  Illinois,  May 
14th,  1884.  Eighteen  Camps  were  represented  by  duly 
accredited  delegates. 

The  officers  and  members  of  Standing  Committees 
were,  on  motion,  allowed  ten  cents  per  mile  one  way,  and 
$2  per  day  for  time  in  attendance  on  this  meeting  ;  local 
Camps  to  remunerate  other  delegates  in  attendance.  Per 
capita  fixed  at  $1  per  year. 

Head  Officers  were  elected  as  follows  : 

Head  Consul  —  J.  C.  Root,  Lyons,  Iowa. 

Banker  — A.  M.  Green,  Mt.  Carroll,  111. 
Clerk  — J)i.  H.  M.  Kennedy,  Fulton,  111. 
Physician  —  Dr.  P.  L.  McKinnie,  Moline,  111. 

(  S.  H.  Zimmerman,  Polo,  111. 
Managers —  \  C.  C.  Farmer,  Mt.  Carroll,  111. 

(  J.  J.  Ward,  Sterling,  111. 


278 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Boo  k. 


At  this  meeting  a  Board  of  eleven  Directors  were 
elected,  viz  :  Joseph  C.  Root,  P.  L.  McKinnie,  S.  T.  Toll, 
S.  H.  Zimmerman,  H.  M.  Kennedy,  A.  M.  Green,  R.  J. 
Dill,  J.  J.  Ward,  E.  D.  Leland,  l/c.  Brown,  and  C.  C. 
Farmer. 

The  following  table  of  rates  was  adopted.  Limit  of 
age  reduced  to  sixty  years  : 


Age. 

$1,000. 

$2,000. 

Age. 

11,000. 

$2,000. 

Age. 

$1,000.  $2,000. 

18  to  20,  .  , 

. . .$  .30  $  .60 

46 

$  .55  $1.15 

55  ,  . 

$1.00  $2.00 

20  to  24... 

.  .  .35 

.70 

47 

,  .60 

1.20 

56 

1.10  2.20 

24  to  28  , 

.  ,  .40 

.80 

48  , 

.65 

1.30 

57  , 

1.20  2.40 

29  to  33 ,  ,  , 

,  .45 

.85 

49 

.70 

1.40 

58  .. 

1.25  2.50 

34  to  37 

.  .45 

.90 

50 

'.75 

1.50 

59  ,  , 

,.  1.50  3.00 

38  to  39... 

.  .  .50 

.95 

51 

.80 

1.60 

40  to  41. 

.50 

1.00 

52... 

..  .85 

1.70 

42  to  43 

.55 

1.05 

53  ,. 

..  .90 

1.80 

44  to  45  ., 

1.10 

54  . . 

. .  .95 

1.90 

A  few  neighbors  now  approaching  seventy  years  of 
age,  admitted  under  the  provisions  of  the  foregoing  table, 
are  at  this  date  worthy  members  of  the  order. 

Adjourned  to  meet  at  Moline,  Illinois,  on  Wednesday, 
February  11th,  1885. 


Fourth  Session.— Convened  at  Moline,  Illinois,  Feb- 
ruary 11th,  1885. 

The  report  of  the  Committee  on  Mileage  and  Per  Diem 
shows  forty-nine  Head  Camp  officers,  members  of  stand- 
ing committees,  and  delegates  to  have  been  present,  and 
the  aggregate  on  account  of  mileage  and  per  diem  to  have 
been  $330.22. 

The  Head  Clerk's  report  shows  seventy  Camps  orga- 
nized ;  total  membership  one  thousand  two  hundred  and 
seventy-two,  and  that  from  fifty-three  Camps  then  liable 
there  had  been  received  during  the  previous  year  :  On 
account  of  benefit  fund,  $1,910.47  ;  on  account  of  general 
fund,  $447.20. 


/        The  Woodman^  Hand-Booh. 


279 


Representation  to  next  Head  Camp  made  on  the  basis 
of  one  delegate  to  each  Camp,  and  Camps  with  over  fifty 
members,  two  delegates. 

The  following  Head  Officers  were  elected  : 

Head  Consul  —  Joseph  C.  Root,  Lyons,  Iowa. 
Banker  —  A.  M.  Green,  Mt.  Carroll,  111. 
Clerk  — M.  Kennedy,  Fulton,  111. 
"    Physician  —  P.  L.  McKinnie,  Moline,  111. 

"  Section  A,  Division  I,'^  was  amended,  reducing  the 
limit  of  age  to  fifty-one  ^^ears. 

A  per  capita  of  $1  was  ordered,  with  a  special  of  fifty 
..onts  to  be  called  March  81st,  1885. 

The  Head  Officers  and  Managers  were  constituted  the 
Board  of  Directors  and  Executive  Council,  viz  :  Head 
Consul,  J.  C.  Root ;  Head  Adviser,  W.  H.  Parks  ;  Head 
Clerk,  H.  M.  Kennedy  ;  Head  Banker,  A.  M.  Green  ;  Head 
Physician,  P.  L.  McKinnie  ;  Head  Watchman,  S.  T.  Toll  ; 
Head  Escort,  M.  H.  Underwood  ;  Head  Sentry,  M.  F. 
Hertz  ;  Head  Managers,  S.  H.  Zimmerman,  J.  J.  Ward, 
ind  C.  C.  Farmer. 

Adjourned  to  meet  at  Sterling,  111.,  October  12th,  1886. 


Fifth  Session. —  Convened  at  Sterling,  Illinois,  Tues- 
day, October  12th,  1886. 

Two  hundred  and  thirty-two  delegates,  including  Head 
Officers  and  members  of  standing  committees,  were  in 
attendance  on  the  fifth  session  of  the  Head  Camp,  the 
mileage  and  per  diem  aggregating  $2,815.46. 

The  reports  submitted  by  the  Head  Officers  gave  two 
hundred  and  fifty-five  as  a  total  number  of  Camps  orga- 
nized to  date,  with  an  aggregate  membership  of  seven 
thousand  three  hundred  and  ten. 

Since  the  1885  session  of  the  Head  Camp  there  had 
been  received  on  account  of  Benefit  Fund,  $42,514.23  ;  on 
account  of  General  Fund,  $9,165.81. 


280 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


Vacancies,  caused  by  the  death  of  Wayne  H.  Parks, 
Head  Adviser,  and  the  resignation  of  Manager  J.  J.  Ward, 
had  been  filled  by  the  appointment  of  W.  H.  Hobart, 
Camp  No.  56,  as  Head  Adviser,  and  A.  Richtmeyer,  Camp 
No.  12,  as  Manager. 

Per  capita  for  the  ensuing  two  years  fixed  at  $1  per  an- 
num. A  resolution  ordering  a  special  call  upon  all  Camps 
to  forward  at  once  to  the  Head  Clerk  the  sum  of  fifty 
cents  for  every  member  in  good  standing,  as  a  loan  to  be 
refunded  said  Camps,  was  adopted.  Under  this  call 
$3,511.62  was  received. 

The  following  named  Head  Officers  were  declared 
elected  for  the  ensuing  term  : 

Head  Consul  —  J.  C.  Root,  Lyons,  Towa. 

Adviser  —  F.  F.  Roose,  Lincoln,  Neb. 
Clerh  —  'R.  M.  Kennedy,  Fulton,  111. 
Banker  —  A.  M.  Green,  Mt.  Carroll,  111. 
Escort — D.  Kaufman,  Omaha,  Neb. 
Physician — P.  L.  McKinnie,  Moline,  111. 
Watchman — S.  T.  Toll,  Clinton,  Iowa. 
Sentry  —  M.  F.  Hertz,  Aurora,  111. 

i  S.  P.  Leland,  Charles  City,  low^a. 
Managers —  <  S.  H.  Zimmerman,  )  ,  , 

(C.C.  Farmer,         (  holding  over. 

Adjourned  to  meet  on  the  second  Tuesday  (the  13th 
day)  of  November,  1888,  at  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 


Sixth  Session. —  Convened  at  Des  Moines,  Iowa,  Tues- 
day, November  13th,  1888. 

Three  hundred  and  seventy  delegates,  including  Head 
Officers  and  members  of  standing  committees,  were  in  at- 
tendance on  the  sixth  session  of  the  Head  Camp,  at  an 
aggregate  cost  of  $9,009.75  on  account  of  mileage  and 
per  diem. 


Ritual  Committee,  1894. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


281 


The  reports  of  the  Head  Officers  show  a  total  of  seven 
hundred  and  seventy  Camps  organized  to  date,  with  a 
total  membership  of  twenty-three  thousand  seven  hun- 
dred and  seventy-six  neighbors. 

Since  the  1886  session  of  the  Head  Camp  there  had 
been  received  account  Benefit  Fund,  $222,920.77;  account 
General  Fund,  $38,253.15. 

Head  Officers  for  the  ensuing  term  elected  as  follows: 

Head  Consul  —  Joseph  C.  Root,  Lyons,  Iowa. 
Adviser  —  F.  F.  Roose,  Lincoln,  Neb. 
*  Clerk  — M.  Kennedy,  Fulton,  111. 

II      "    Physician — P.  L.  McKinnie,  Evanston,  111. 
"    Banker  —  Augustus  Smith,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 
Escort — C.  F.  Hamlin,  Emporia,  Kas. 
§  Watchman  —  Nathan  Jacobs,  St.  Paul,  Minn. 

^     ^'    Sentry  —  A.  C.  LeBaron,  Sharon,  Wis. 

(   C.  K.  Irwin,  Tomah,  Wis. 
Managers —  <    C.  C.  Farmer,  )  , 

P.  Leland,    j  holding  over. 

°L.  E.  Fish,  Moline,  111. 
S.  L.  Waide,  Muscatine,  Iowa. 
IB.  F.  Tallman. 

The  aforenamed  constituting  the  Board  of  Directors 
and  Executive  Council. 


*Head  Clerk  Kennedy  resigns  and  is  succeeded  by  L.  E.  Fish,  ap- 
pointed Clerk  pro  tern,  by  Executive  Council  December  5th,  1888. 

*Prank  C.  Bray  ton,  appointed  Head  Clerk  January,  1889. 

fResigned  September  6th,  1889 ;  S.  H.  Zimmerman  appointed  to 
fill  vacancy. 

JResigned  July  22d,  1889  ;  succeeded  by  A.  C.  LeBaron,  Sharon, 
Wis. 

IIRemoved  October  26th,  1889,  and  G.  W.  Clendenen  appointed  to 
fill  vacancy. 

Head  Clerk  Brayton  resigned  January  9th,  1890,  and  A.  F.  Morri- 
son appointed  to  fill  vacancy. 

°Removed  August  1889,  and  P.  T.  Baker  appointed  to  fill  vacancy. 

^Resigned  July  22d,  1889,  and  A.  W.  Bastian  appointed  to  fill 
vacancy. 

^Resigned  July  22d,  1889,  and  C.  O.  Scudder  appointed  to  fill 
vacancy. 


282 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


Adjourned  to  meet  at  Springfield,  111.,  Tuesday,  Novem- 
ber 11th,  1890. 

Jurisdiction  Modern  Woodmen  of  America.-—  Origi- 
nally defined  by  the  Fundamental  Law  (edition  1883), 
viz:  Sec.  A.  Div.  A.  The  fraternity  shall  not  organize 
any  Camps  south  of  Mason  and  Dixon's  line,  but  shall  be 
confined  to  the  United  States  and  British  possessions 
north  of  said  line." 

June  28th,  1883,  the  Head  Camp  restricted  the  juris- 
diction to  territory  north  of  a  line  drawn  east  and  west 
through  Centralia,  111.,  and  confined  to  the  states  of  Iowa, 
Illinois,  Wisconsin,  Minnesota,  Dakota,  and  Nebraska. 

February  13th,  1885,  Kansas  and  Colorado  admitted. 

October  13th,  1886,  Cook  county,  111.,  and  Milwaukee, 
Wis.,  excluded. 

November  13th,  1888,  Michigan  admitted,  exclusive  of 
Detroit. 

July,  1890,  Colorado  withdrew. 

November,  1892,  Missouri  admitted. 

Qualifications  for  Membership. —  Defined  Sec.  A. 
Div.  A.,  Fundamental  Law  (edition  1883),  as  follows: 

Persons  to  be  members  must  be  over  seventeen  and 
under  sixty-five  3''ears  of  age,  of  sound  bodily  health  and 
mind,  of  exemplary  habits,  good  moral  character,  and 
competent  to  gain  a  reputable  livelihood,  without  further 
restriction  as  to  occupation." 

In  1884  limitation  of  age  changed  to  include  those  be- 
tween eighteen  and  sixty  years,  and  persons  engaged  in 
the  manufacture  or  sale  of  intoxicating  liquors  declared 
ineligible. 

In  1885,  April  2d,  limit  of  age  reduced  to  fifty-one 
years,  and  provision  made  for  the  issue  of  benefit  certifi- 
cates, including  all  classes  within  the  limit  of  age,  for 
$3,000,  heretofore  issued  only  for  $1,000  or  $2,000. 

Those  engaged  in  prohibited  occupations  excluded 
November,  1888.    Sec.  H.  Div.  I.  Fundamental  Law 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book.  283 


amended  to  read  :  Persons  under  forty-five  years  of 
age  becoming  members  of  this  fraternity  shall  state  in 
his  application  the  amount  he  desires  inserted  in  his  cer- 
tificate,, which  shall  be  either  $1,000,  $2,000,  or  $3,000. 
Persons  over  forty-five  years  of  age  cannot  receive  a  cer- 
tificate for  an  amount  beyond  $2,000,"  which  provision 
has  since  remained  in  force. 

In  1892,  the  maximum  age  was  fixed  at  forty-five  years, 
and  the  minimum  age  at  eighteen  years.  Persons  past 
forty-one  years  can  only  carry  $2,000. 


Rock  Island  Meeting. 


Pursuant  to  the  call  issued  by  the  committee  appointed 
at  a  meeting  of  "Woodmen,  held  in  Bushnell,  Illinois, 
June  27th,  delegates  representing  local  Camps  of  the 
Modern  Woodmen  of  America  met  in  Harper's  Opera 
House  at  10  o'clock  a.  m.,  for  the  purpose  of 'considering 
the  evils  which  threatened  the  fraternity,  and  to  confer 
together  and  take  such  action  for  the  good  of  the  associa- 
tion as  might  be  deemed  advisable  and  proper. 

The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  Joseph  L.  Haas, 
of  Rock  Island,  who  stated  that  it  had  been  suggested 
that  the  Chairman  and  Secretary  of  the  committee  that 
issued  the  call  for  the  meeting  be  made  temporary  officers 
of  the  convention.  On  his  motion  to  that  effect,  it  was 
adopted  unanimously,  and  H.  C.  Agnew,  of  Macomb, 
Illinois,  and  Van  L.  Hampton,  of  Colchester,  Illinois,  as- 
sumed the  duties  of  temporary  Chairn:ian  and  Secretary, 
respectively. 

Hon.  William  McConochie,  mayor  of  Pock  Island,  de- 
livered an  address  of  welcome,  which  was  responded  to 
by  the  temporary  Chairman. 


284 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh, 


Spencer  Mattison,  of  Rock  Island,  was  made  assistant 
temporary  Secretary. 

A  Committee  of  Three  on  Credentials  was  appointed, 
consisting  of  S.  Mattison,  Rock  Island  ;  S.  A.  Murdock, 
Havana,  Illinois  ;  and  James  Blaisdell,  Rock  Island. 

By  unanimous  vote,  the  temporary  organization  Avas 
made  permanent. 

The  following  Committee  on  Resolutions  was  appointed: 
J.  L.  Haas,  T.  J.  Sparks,  Prof.  George  Price,  William  A. 
Northcott,  Illinois  ;  Dr.  C.  A.  Fletcher,  Dr.  C.  M.Watson, 
Michigan  ;  Dr.  J.  F.  Rood,  J.  H.  Ludington,  Wisconsin  ; 
F.  P.  Baker,  J.  T.  Kunckey,  Nebraska  ;  W.  A.  Hall,  L.  P. 
Allen,  Iowa. 

The  Committee  on  Credentials  reported  the  list  of 
Camps  and  delegates  representing  them,  and  recom- 
mended that  regular  delegates  not  having  written  creden- 
tials be  allowed  to  vote  in  the  convention,  which  report 
was  adopted. 

The  motion  to  appoint  a  Committee  on  Recommenda- 
tions was  deferred  until  the  afternoon  session. 

Motion  prevailed  that  the  Chair  appoint  a  Committee 
of  Five  on  Grievances. 

A  motion  inviting  Dr.  P.  L.  McKinnie  to  address  the 
afternoon  session  was  amended  so  as  to  also  invite  Head 
Consul  J.  C.  Root,  or  any  of  his  friends  that  might  be 
present,  and,  being  put  upon  its  passage,  was  carried. 
The  Secretary  was  instructed  to  telegraph  this  invitation 
to  Mr.  Root.  After  final  adjournment  the  Secretary  re- 
ceived a  dispatch  from  Lyons,  Iowa,  the  home  of  the  Head 
Consul,  stating  that  he  was  absent  from  home  and  could 
not  possibly  reach  Rock  Island  to  speak  that  day. 

Upon  reconvening  at  1:30  p.  m.,  the  Committee  on  Cre- 
dentials made  its  final  report  of  the  attendance,  and  pre- 
sented a  revised  list  of  Camps  represented,  numbering 
one  hundred  and  seventy-nine,  representing  Camps  in 
Illinois,  Iowa,  Wisconsin,  Michigan,  and  Minnesota. 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


285 


Upon  motion,  the  chair  appointed  the  following  Com- 
mittee on  Recommendations  :  N.  G.  Truby,  IlliDois  ;  L. 
P.  Allen,  Iowa  ;  J.  H.  Russell,  Wisconsin  ;  Dr.  A.  I.  Car- 
per, Michigan  ;  J.  C.  Sloan,  Nebraska  ;  and  A.  Cummings, 
Minnesota. 

Dr.  P.  L.  McKinnie  was  introduced,  and  addressed  the 
meeting  on  the  evils  that  threatened  the  order,  and 
remedies  that  might  be  applied  thereto,  entering  into  de- 
tail as  to  the  Bernum  fraudulent  death  beneficiary,  and 
to  the  official  acts  of  the  Head  Officers,  and  the  trial  of 
the  State  vs.  J.  C.  Root  and  other  Head  Officers  of  the 
association,  then  pending.  Dr.  McKinnie  answered  ques- 
tions asked  him  by  various  members  of  the  convention. 

A.  W.  Bastain,  of  Fulton,  HI.,  Head  Watchman,  and 
editor  of  the  EchOy  was  introduced,  and  spoke  in  defense 
of  the  head  management  of  the  order,  denying  the 
charges  that  had  heen  made  derogatory  to  the  Head 
Officers.  Neighbor  Bastain  was  questioned  relative  to 
the  matters  under  discussion,  and  agreed  to  publish  in  the 
next  issue  of  the  Echo  the  official  proceedings  of  this 
meeting,  provided  same  were  furnished  within  ten  days. 

A  committee  of  five  was  ordered  appointed  to  ascertain 
by  correspondence  how  many  Camps  had  voted  to  hold 
the  special  Head  Camp  meeting  at  Des  Moines,  August 
12th.  It  was  afterwards  agreed  that  the  Committee  on 
Publishing  Proceedings  should  attend  to  this. 

Committee  on  Resolutions  reported  ;  after  changes  and 
the  addition  of  the  eighth  resolution,  same  were  adopted 
as  follows  : 

We,  the  representatives  of  about  two  hundred  Camps 
of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America,  comprising  the 
delegates  from  the  states  of  Illinois,  Iowa,  Michigan, 
Wisconsin,  and  Nebraska,  having  only  an  advisory 
power,  resolve  as  follows  : 

First.  We  renew  our  confidence  in  the  association  of 
the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America,  which  now  comprises 


286 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


about  one  thousand  four  hundred  Camps,  with  a  mem- 
bership of  about  forty-five  thousand,  and  believe  that  it 
offers  the  best  and  cheapest  plan  of  mutual  insurance  yet 
devised,  and  it  is  our  sole  purpose  to  do  all  in  our  power 
to  preserve  the  association  intact  and  protect  it  from  the 
evils  that  threaten  it ;  and  we  believe  that  by  wise  counsel 
and  prompt  action  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America 
will  soon  be  started  upon  a  new  era  of  prosperity  and 
growth. 

Second.  That,  whereas,  there  are  now  pending  in  the 
circuit  court  of  Whiteside  county,  Illinois,  against  some 
of  the  Head  Officers  of  our  order,  grave  charges  of  fraud 
and  improper  management,  and  that  owing  to  delay  and 
technical  obstructions  on  the  part  of  these  officers  in 
answering  said  charges,  the  welfare  of  the  association  is 
imperilled  ;  it  is  our  wish  that  said  charges  be  vigorously 
pushed  to  as  early  a  termination  as  possible. 

Third.  That  while  we  withhold  any  formal  expression 
as  to  the  guilt  or  innocence  of  these  parties  until  the 
proper  tribunal  has  passed  upon  the  matter,  we  hereby 
commend  Attorney-General  Hunt  and  Auditor  Pavey  for 
the  fidelity  and  energy  they  have  shown  in  giving  the 
matter  a  full  and  fair  investigation,  and  all  others  who 
have  made  efi'orts  to  preserve  the  good  name  of  the 
Modern  Woodmen  of  America. 

Fourth.  That  we  advise  all  the  Camps  to  send  repre- 
sentatives to  the  Head  Camp  called  to  meet  at  Des  Moines, 
Iowa,  on  the  12th  day  of  August,  1890,  and  we  believe 
that  by  a  full  attendance  such  action  will  be  secured  as 
will  place  our  association  on  a  sound  footing,  and  relieve 
us  from  the  troubles  that  now  embarrass  us. 

Fifth.  That  we  favor  the  payment  by  the  diff'erent 
Camps  of  the  double  assessment,  known  as  Nos.  5  and  6. 
We  do  not  only  believe  that  this  double  assessment  is  nec- 
essary, but  we  are  fearful  that  other  double  assessments 
will  become  necessary. 


The  WoodmarJs  Hand-Booh. 


287 


Sixth.  It  is  our  belief  that  there  is  too  much  power 
vested  in  the  Head  Consul  and  the  Executive  Council  by 
the  laws  of  our  association,  and  we  favor  such  changes 
as  will  restore  these  powers  to  the  membership,  to  be  ex- 
ercised through  the  Head  Camp. 

Seventh.  It  is  the  sense  of  this  convention  that  the 
organization  of  the  so-called  "  Sovereign  Camp  of  the 
World,  Modern  Woodmen  of  America,"  at  Omaha,  Ne- 
braska, as  a  separate  and  distinct  order  from  the  Modern 
Woodmen  of  America,  but  borrowing  our  Ritual,  plan, 
and  virtually  our  name,  is  without  warrant,  and  a  tres- 
pass uj)on  the  rights  and  good  of  our  order,  and  is 
severely  condemned  by  us.  The  benefits  of  the  Modern 
Woodmen  of  America  can  be  extended  by  ourselves,  and 
we  are  satisfied  that  we  can  secure  Head  Officers  who  Avill 
protect  us. 

On  motion,  a  committee  of  five  was  appointed  to  formu- 
late and  present  to  the  next  meeting  of  the  Head  Camp 
a  revision  of  the  Fundamental  Laws  and  Constitution  of 
the  association,  viz:  Dr.  E.  Mammen,  Illinois;  Dr.  P.  L. 
McKinnie,  Illinois;  W.  L.  Kellogg,  Iowa;  C.  M.  Watson, 
Michigan;  and  F.  P.  Baker,  Nebraska. 

A  committee  of  three  was  appointed  to  issue  a  circular 
address  to  the  order,  to  accompany  proceedings  of  this 
meeting  and  other  documents,  viz:  W.  A.  Northcott, 
Greenville,  111.;  Van  L.  Hampton,  Colchester,  111.;  and 
C.  W.  Hawes,  Pock  Island,  111. 

A  collection  of  $1.00  each  from  the  delegates  present 
was  made  to  pay  expenses  of  issuing  proceedings,  etc.,  to 
all  Camps.  The  same  was  placed  in  the  Secretary's 
hands,  with  instructions  to  pay  balance  to  Pock  Island 
county  committee  after  paying  balance  due  on  sending 
out  Bushnell  circular,  and  for  printing,  mailing,  etc.,  for 
this  convention. 

The  motion  that  a  committee  be  appointed  to  recom- 
mend candidates  for  Head  Officers  at  the  next  election 
was  lost. 


288 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


After  extending  a  vote  of  thanks  to  the  Rock  Island 
Woodmen  for  their  courteous  entertainment  of  visiting 
Woodmen  and  to  the  President  and  Secretary  for  their 
efficient  services,  the  meeting  adjourned. 


The  Des  Moines  Meeting. 


Internal  dissensions  among  the  management  of  the 
Modern  Woodmen  of  America  prompted  a  call  for  a 
special  meeting  of  the  Head  Camp  to  be  held  at  Des 
Moines,  Iowa,  on  the  12th  day  of  August,  1890.  Before 
the  meeting  of  this  Head  Camp  an  injunction  had  been 
granted  by  Judge  Tuthill,  of  Chicago,  restraining  the 
holding  of  this  meeting;  and  after  the  delegates  had  as- 
sembled in  Des  Moines  the  injunction  was  served  on  the 
Head  Officers.  Head  Consul  Root  called  the  meeting  to 
order  at  the  Foster  Opera  House,  and  stated  that  the  Exe- 
cutive Council,  after  deliberation  and  consultation  with 
attorneys,  had  decided  that  it  was  not  advisable,  in 
view  of  the  injunction,  to  hold  a  special  meeting  of  the 
Head  Camp. 

Neighbor  E.  S.  Bertram,  of  Council  Grove,  Kansas, 
was  elected  Chairman  of  the  meeting,  which  was  held, 
not  as  a  Head  Camp,  but  as  an  advisory  meeting  of  the 
delegates  present.  A  Conference  Committee  was  selected, 
composed  of  the  following  members:  J.  W.  Breidenthal, 
Chairman,  and  E.  R.  Hutchins,  Secretary;  L.  E.  Tuttle, 
James  M.  Graham,  C.  T.  Heydecker,  Illinois;  E.  R. 
Hutchins,  A.  D.  Peck,  B.  E.  0.  Simonds,  Iowa;  J.  H. 
Pierce,  G.  B.  Thompson,  J.  H.  Miller,  Wisconsin;  E.  E. 
C.  Murphy,  J.  G.  Johnson,  George  Briedenthal,  Kansas; 
W.  J.  Bryan,  Dr.  W.  N.  Dorwood,  C.  C.  McNish,  Ne- 


The  Woodrnaivs  Hand-BooJc. 


289 


braska;  J.  R.  Dunning,  H.  C.  Hedges,  X.  ^V.  Roberts, 
Michigan;  "W.  H.  Davidson,  H.  B.  Gress,  B.  D.  Smith, 
Minnesota;  W.  S.  Stoekwell,  South  Dakota. 

This  committee  reported  the  following  resolutions, 
which  were  unanimously  adopted  : 

Neighbors  :  Your  Committee  on  Resolutions  had  a 
continuous  session  of  three  hours,  and  have  discussed 
freely,  and  as  they  believed  fairly  and  impartially,  the 
resolutions  placed  in  their  hands.  With  a  fraternal  and 
neighborly  spirit  of  loyalty  to  the  order,  they  have  adopted 
the  following,  and  recommend  to  you  the  same  action: 

Resolved.  First  —  That  the  neighbors  of  the  Modern 
Woodmen  of  America,  in  convention  assembled,  declare 
their  unqualified  disapproval  of  the  action  of  those  mem- 
bers who  are  responsible  for  the  proceedings  of  injunc- 
tion by  which  a  properly-called  special  session  has  been 
defeated  and  a  vast  amount  of  expense  and  labor  un- 
necessarily sacrificed. 

Resolved.  Second  —  That  we  request  the  Head  Consul 
to  use  every  efi'ort  to  have  the  Tuthill  injunction  dissolved 
as  soon  as  possible. 

Resolved.  Third — That  it  is  the  sense  of  this  meeting 
that  the  original  basis  of  representation  be  that  for  the 
next  regular  meeting  of  the  Head  Camp. 

Resolved.  Fourth  —  That  it  is  the  sense  of  this  conven- 
tion, that  at  the  Head  Camp  meeting  in  Springfield,  111., 
in  November,  a  Grand  Head  Camp  should  be  organized 
by  the  delegates  in  attendance,  and  that  states  having 
four  thousand  or  more  members  may  at  that  time  or- 
ganize state  jurisdiction,  wuth  absolute  and  entire  control 
of  their  funds.  That  Illinois  may  retain  the  present 
charter,  adopting  it  for  its  jurisdiction,  with  such  changes 
as  it  may  see  proper  to  make,  and  that  contiguous  states 
having  less  than  four  thousand  members  should  be 
grouped  together  in  one  or  more  jurisdictions,  as  their 
aggregate  membership  may  suggest. 

19 


290 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


Resolved.  Fifth  —  That  we  earnestly  recommend  all 
neighbors  to  pay  their  assessments  promptly,  and  thus 
sustain  the  credit  of  our  beloved  order  and  tide  over  the 
temporary  difficulties  which  at  present  threaten  it. 

The  most  important  action  of  this  meeting  was  the  ap- 
pointment of  the  committee  of  one  from  each  state  to 
prepare  the  changes  to  be  made  in  the  Fundamental  Law 
and  present  them  at  the  Springfield  Head  Camp.  The 
work  of  reorganization  of  this  order  is  very  largely  due 
to  this  committee,  which  was  as  follows  :  Illinois,  C.  T. 
Heydecker  ;  Iowa,  Dr.  E.  R.  Hutchins  ;  Wisconsin,  J.  H. 
Pierce  ;  Nebraska,  W.  J.  Bryan  ;  South  Dakota,  W.  S. 
Stockwell  ;  Michigan,  H.  C.  Hedges  ;  Minnesota,  W.  H. 
Dawson  ;  Kansas,  J.  G.  Johnson. 

While  the  Des  Moines  meeting  was  only  an  advisory 
power,  it  brought  together  the  delegates  for  consultation, 
and  resulted  in  arranging  the  plans  which  were  so  suc- 
cessfully executed  at  Springfield. 


Second  Epoch — Spring£eld  Head  Camp. 


The  Head  Camp  which  convened  in  the  city  of  Spring- 
field, Illinois,  Tuesday,  November  11th,  1890,  properly 
marks  the  beginning  of  the  second  great  epoch  in  the 
history  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America.  It  is  true 
that  the  meetings  held  that  year  at  Rock  Island,  Illinois, 
and  Des  Moines,  Iowa,  set  in  motion  the  great  factors 
which  brought  about  the  reorganization  of  the  order  at 
Springfield. 

The  Springfield  Head  Camp  met  under  peculiar  diffi-  f 
culties.    The  order  was  almost  threatened  with  dissolu-  ' 
tion  from  internal  strife.    The  membership  had  actually 
decreased  during  the  six  months  preceding  this  meeting. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


291 


Many  Camps  had  dissolved,  and  many  others  were  on  the 
eve  of  dissolution.  A  lack  of  confidence  prevailed 
throughout  the  entire  jurisdiction.  There  was  a  deficit 
in  the  general  fund,  and  the  general  expense  of  the  Head 
Camp  to  be  paid,  besides  other  large  obligations  already 
contracted.  Meeting  under  such  circumstances,  the  re- 
sults of  this  Head  Camp  were  almost  miraculous.  Con- 
fidence was  restored  and  the  great  ship  righted.  The 
Fundamental  Laws  were  wisely  revised,  and  the  order  put 
upon  a  sound  business  footing.  Each  delegate  went  home 
and  reported  to  his  Camp  that  the  Modern  Woodmen  of 
America  had  started  on  a  new  era  of  growth  and  pros- 
perity. This  Head  Camp  meeting  demonstrated  the 
great  value  of  the  fraternal  feature  in  our  order. 

To  such  an  extent  did  the  desire  for  relief  prevail  among 
the  members  of  the  order  at  large,  who  were  interested  in 
its  social  and  financial  success,  and  not  in  the  mad  strife 
for  retention  of  office,  personal  supremacy,  or  success  of 
individuals,  that  the  morning  of  the  first  day  of  the 
meeting  indicated,  from  the  methods  adopted  in  transact- 
ing business  and  the  mode  of  disposing  of  the  same,  that 
this  body  —  composed  of  one  thousand  delegates  from  the 
nine  states  in  its  jurisdiction  —  had  the  welfare  of  the 
order  in  view,  as  a  mutual  benefit  society,  in  accomplish- 
ing its  chartered  objects  of  distributing  to  beneficiaries  of 
its  deceased  neighbors  mortuary  funds,  and  all  else  was 
subsidiary  to  this  object. 

For  three  days  this  body  of  men  remained  in  session, 
the  sittings  extending  until  late  each  night,  and  various 
committees  being  continuously  at  work,  the  evident  de- 
termination being  to  restore  harmony,  as  evidenced  by 
the  impatience  with  which  the  body  entertained  anything 
relating  to  the  former  troubles  among  individual  mem- 
bers, and  the  continuous  exertions  in  the  way  of  devising 
plans  and  means  for  the  future  growth  of  the  order,  as 
well  as  amending  defects  in  the  organic  laws. 


292 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book, 


The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  Head  Consul  Root, 
and  the  Divine  blessing  invoked  by  Rev.  F.  F.  Farmaloe, 
of  Genoa,  Illinois.  Then  followed  the  reports  of  the 
officers,  Avhich  were  received  and  ordered  printed. 

The  committee  selected  at  Des  Moines  to  report  the 
proper  changes  in  the  Fundamental  Laws  was  continued 
by  this  Head  Camp,  and  their  report  made  through  Dr. 
E.  R.  Hutchins,  who  was  also  chairman  of  the  standing 
Committee  on  Laws.  While  the  Head  Camp  was  con- 
sidering this  report  in  the  committee  of  the  whole.  Neigh- 
bor J.  W.  White,  of  Tampico,  Illinois,  was  called  to  the 
chair.  The  report  was  considered  section  by  section  by 
the  Head  Camp,  and  after  much  labor  and  continuous 
sittings  the  great  work  of  reorganization  was  accomplished. 

During  the  meeting  the  delegates  were  favored  with 
speeches  of  welcome  from  Joseph  W.  Fifer,  governor  of 
Illinois,  and  General  John  M.  Palmer,  United  States  sen- 
ator from  Illinois. 

At  this  meeting  of  the  Head  Camp  all  of  the  present 
(1894)  officers  of  our  order  were  elected,  except  that  in 
the  case  of  the  vacancy  caused  by  the  death  of  Director 
Mathews,  who  was  elected  at  this  time.  Director  Reece  is 
now  filling  that  office. 

There  were  nine  hundred  and  sixty-one  delegates  in 
attendance  at  this  Head  Camp,  and  it  cost  the  order  in 
mileage  and  per  diem  $23,339.91.  At  the  time  of  this 
meeting  there  were  about  forty  thousand  members  in  good 
standing. 

Changes  were  made  in  the  Fundamental  Laws  so  as  to 
place  the  business  and  financial  management  of  the  order 
in  the  hands  of  the  Board  of  Directors,  consisting  of  five 
members.  Independent  members  were  abolished.  The 
basis  of  representation  to  the  Head  Camp  was  changed 
from  that  of  one  member  from  each  Camp  to  one  dele- 
gate for  each  five  hundred  members  or  major  fraction 
thereof,  and  one  delegate  at  large  from  each  state. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


293 


Omaha  Head  Camp, 


The  eighth  annual  session  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of 
America  convened  at  Omaha,  Nebraska,  on  the  15th  day 
of  November,  1892.  The  period  between  this  meeting 
and  the  Springfield  Head  Camp  in  1890  had  been  one  of 
great  prosperity  for  the  order.  During  this  time  the  num- 
ber of  new  certificates  issued  had  been,  in  round  numbers, 
thirty-eight  thousand.  The  membership  in  good  stand- 
ing had  increased  from  forty  thousand  to  nearly  seventy- 
three  thousand.  During  this  time,  in  round  numbers, 
$1,100,000  had  been  paid  to  the  beneficiaries  of  deceased 
members,  while  the  whole  amount  for  all  the  3^ears  prior 
to  this  time  had  only  been  $890,199.15.  This  amount 
had  gone  principally  to  widows  and  minor  children,  and 
Avas  discriminate  charity  that  went  to  the  right  place.  It 
went  to  make  desolate  places  glad  ;  to  wipe  the  tear  from 
the  cheek  of  the  widow,  and  to  clothe  and  feed  little 
children  and  send  them  to  school.  During  this  period 
$58,011.15  had  been  accumulated  in  the  general  fund  by 
wise  economy,  and  every  just  claim  against  the  order  had 
been  paid  promptly  and  in  full  ;  and  our  credit  was  good 
for  the  full  face  of  our  orders  at  any  bank  in  the  jurisdic- 
tion. During  this  period  four  hundred  and  ninet3^-four 
new  Camps  had  been  added  to  the  roster  ;  the  cost  of 
insurance  to  each  member  had  not  been  increased  ;  the 
cost  for  carrying  $1,000  for  a  person  thirty-seven  years  of 
age  still  remained  at  $4.95  per  year.  The  ratio  of  increase 
had  grown  with  each  added  month,  and  the  fraternal 
spirit  had  kept  pace  with  this  growth. 

At  this  Head  Camp  the  following  committees  were  ap- 
pointed : 

Committee  on  Resolutions. —  E.  S.  Bertram,  Kansas  ;  E. 
S.  Smith,  Illinois  ;  Thomas  J.  Conlin,  Minnesota. 

Committee  on  Claims. —  James  M.  Graham,  Illinois; 
Jacob  M.  Sholl,  Illinois  ;  Charles  J.  Wilson,  Iowa. 

( 


294 


The  Woodman'' s  Hand-Booh. 


Committee  oti  Mihage  and  Per  Diem. —  T.  K.  Mills,  Tov:a  ; 
J.  A.  Wells,  Kansas  ;  R.  E.  Henshie,  Illinois. 

Committee  on  Distribution  of  Reports  of  Head  Officers. — 
R.  H.  Balding,  Kansas  ;  0.  J.  Downing,  Illinois  ;  W.  F. 
Beck,  Illinois. 

Committee  on  Elections. —  0.  F.  Avery,  Illinois  ;  W.  S. 
Pidcock,  Illinois  ;  M.  A.  Thayer,  Wisconsin. 

The  reports  of  the  Head  Officers  were  presented-  and 
referred  to  the  proper  committee,  and  afterwards  approved. 

Marvin  Quackenbush,  chairman  of  the  Committee  on 
Credentials,  reported  the  following  delegates  as  composing 
the  Head  Camp,  which  report  was  approved  : 

William  A.  Northcott,  Head  Consul;  Hiram  C.  Hedges^ 
Head  Adviser;  Charles  W.  Hawes,  Head  Clerk;  David  C. 
Zink,  Head  Banker;  Frank  Swallow,  Head  Physician; 
W.  H.  Dawson,  Head  Escort;  Louis  H.  Haase,  Head 
Watchman;  Lunie  E.  Mentch,  Head  Sentry;  J.  W.  White, 
J.  G.  Johnson,  C.  T.  Heydecker,  A.  R.  Talbot,  and  J.  N. 
Reece,  Board  of  Directors;  H.  0.  Larrabee,  Humphrey 
Pierce,  and  Perry  Perkins,  of  the  Auditing  Committee; 
J.  S.  Fendley,  Joseph  B.  Kearns,  and  Allison  M.  Cavan, 
Committee  on  Rituals  and  Revision  of  Laws;  Marvin 
Quackenbush,  A.  H.  Hollister,  and  J.  H.  E.  Weig^nit, 
Committee  on  Credentials. 

Illinois  —  Dr.  Charles  Kerr,  Albert  M.  Green,  Albert 
Askey,  Horace  S.  Moore,  0.  J.  Downing,  William  H. 
Shaw,  Alonzo  Richtmeyer,  Walter  S.  Poust,  Albert  D. 
Ellison,  Henry  C.  Mead,  Gustavus  A.  Thornburg,  L.  W. 
JefFery,  Ambrose  L.  Gaines,  Fay  S.  Johnson,  0.  F.  Avery, 
Ransom  Bullock,  Frederick  E.  Foster,  George  W.  Reilly, 
Joseph  McCrory,  Arthur  N.  Talbot,  H.  W.  Mallory,  Jacob 
Mack  Sholl,  John  C.  Read,  George  Lawson,  Jr.,  S.  H. 
Weirman,  Anderson  E.  Ford,  William  Frederick  Beck, 
Adelbert  C.  Fassett,  Dr.  J.  A.  Collins,  Joseph  S.  Daily, 
James  M.  Graham,  Elbert  S.  Smith,  D.  A.  Drennan,  Zeno 
K.  Wood,  Dr.  Morris  H.  Goodrick,  Wilfred  S.  Klein, 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Boolc. 


295 


Martin  L.  KepliDger,  Theodore  P.  Baxter,  Rolen  E.  Hen- 
shie  Walter  S.  Pidcock,  Joseph  H.  Kerr,  George  A. 
Anthony,  Andrew  J.  Grimes,  James  M.  Thomas,  Jr., 
Albert  Head,  Chester  H.  Latham,  T.  F.  Hopkins. 

Iowa— Edward  Werner,  Dan  B.  Horne,  David  C.  Mish- 
ler,  John  S.  Roberts,  David  C.  Griffith,  Thomas  K.  Mills, 
Dan  Miller,  Joseph  Stranad,  Abraham  Block,  Charles  B. 
Fitch,  Charles  J.  Wilson ;  there  being  three  vacancies,  viz: 
John  F.  Beverly,  James  Porter,  and  T.  J.  Symington. 

Wisconsin  —  Moses  A.  Thayer,  William  T.  Symonds, 
John  V.  Stevens,  Moses  W.  Waterman,  F.  F.  Livermore, 
/  G.  N.  Fratt,  J.  G.  Nish,  D.  F.  Crabbe,  and  J.  W.  Munson. 

South  Dakota — Arthur  Phillips,  and  G.  H.  Henning. 

North  Dakota — Charles  L.  Ward. 

Minnesota — Benjamin  D.  Smith,  Thomas  J.  Conlin, 
and  C.  A.  McCoUom. 

Michigan  —  J.  Tyler  Alcott,  John  A.  McDowell,  and 
M.  Ralph  Carrier. 

Kansas  —  E.  S.  Bertram,  Edward  E.  Murphy,  Uberto 
S.  Griffin,  Robert  H.  Balding,  E.  Chenoweth,  John  W. 
Breidenthal,  Joseph  A.  Wells,  Joel  T.  Tinder,  M.  D.,  T. 
A.  Beck,  W.  H.  Parsons,  Alfred  A.  Arnott,  J.  M.  Kirk- 
patrick,  and  J.  T,  Cooper. 

Nebraska — W.  J.  Bryan,  Franklin  F.  Roose,  William 
A.  Saunders,  Joseph  F.  Lake,  Zach.  W.  Haggard,  Sher- 
man F.  Ashby,  A.  M.  Walters,  Clark  C.  McNish,  Isaac  J. 
Tyndale,  Wesley  T.  Wilcox,  T.  E.  Wilson,  D.  I.  Thornton, 
and  C.  Marshall. 

The  changes  in  the  Fundamental  Laws  were  fully  con- 
sidered in  the  three  days'  sessions.  Many  changes  were 
made,  the  principal  ones  being  as  follows  : 

Three  Head  Physicians,  instead  of  one.  Section  A, 
Division  C. 

Duties  of  Local  Clerks.    Section  F,  Division  D. 
Ineligibility  of  Head  Banker  to  succeed  himself.  Sec- 
tion G,  Division  D. 


296 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


Additional  protection  for  the  general  fund.  Section  T, 
Division  D. 

Cost  of  supplies  to  local  Camps.    Division  F. 

Change  in  charter  fee  for  new  Camp,  and  providing  for 
the  revoking  of  charter  of  weak  Camps.  Division  G, 
Sections  A  and  C. 

Change  in  the  cost  of  withdrawal  cards,  and  change  in 
beneficiary  certificate. 

Change  in  matter  of  members  engaged  in  the  pro- 
hibited occupations.    Division  I. 

Change  in  assessment  rates,  and  incorporation  of  $500 
policy.    Division  I,  Section  F. 

Change  in  the  maximum  age  to  forty-five  years,  and  in 
the  amount  of  beneficiary  allowed  correspondingly.  Sec- 
tion A,  Division  I. 

Making  the  monthly  paper  the  ofiicial  notice  of  assess- 
ment.   Division  J. 

Providing  for  a  complete  mailing  outfit,  to  be  the  prop- 
erty of  the  order. 

Making  the  payment  of  local  dues  in  advance  obliga- 
tor}^    Division  K. 

Change  in  regard  to  the  suspension  of  Camps  for  non- 
payment of  assessments  or  dues.    Division  N. 

Changing  the  date  of  meeting  of  state  conventions, 
and  arranging  for  the  payment  of  mileage  and  per  diem 
to  delegates.    Division  Q. 

Fixing  the  standing  of  deputies  in  the  Head  Camp. 
Division  R. 

Rock  Island,  Illinois,  was  selected  as  the  permanent 
location  of  the  Head  Office.  (Owing  to  an  injunction, 
the  Head  Office  has  not  yet  been  removed.) 

The  Neighbors  and  Royal  Neighbors  of  Omaha  enter- 
tained the  Head  Camp  in  excellent  shape,  and  all  went 
home  with  pleasant  recollections  of  their  visit  to  Omaha. 

The  old  officers  were  all  re-elected,  and  the  following 
salaries  fixed  :    Head  Consul,  $2,000  per  annum  ;  Head 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


297 


Clerk,  $2,500  ;  Head  Banker,  $600  ;  Directors  and  Audit- 
ing Committee,  $8  per  day  and  actual  traveling  expenses. 
The  new  officers  were  installed  by  State  Deputy  Dr.  A.  0. 
Faulkner,  of  Lincoln,  Nebraska. 

The  work  of  this  Head  Camp  was  done  with  mature 
deliberation,  and  with  the  utmost  harmony,  and  could 
only  result  in  strengthening  the  order. 


Great  Gatherings. 

I 


Shakespeare  says  there  is  nothing  in  a  name,  but  the 
name  of  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  has  been  no  in- 
considerable factor  in  its  greatness.  The  word  Wood- 
man "  carries  with  it  an  idea  of  the  forest,  the  beautiful 
groves.  Because  of  our  name  every  Camp  feels  a  sort  of 
necessity  in  taking  to  the  woods  at  least  once  each  year 
for  the  purpose  of  holding  a  picnic.  These  picnics  bring 
the  neighbors  together  and  advertise  our  order  to  the 
public.  On  the  4th  day  of  July,  1894,  over  two  hundred 
celebrations  were  held  under  the  auspices  of  the  Camps 
of  Modern  Woodmen.  No  fraternal  society  in  the  United 
States  has  as  many  public  gatherings  as  ours.  The 
parades  are  magnificent.  Woodmen  in  uniform,  wearing 
upon  their  breasts  the  badges  of  fraternity,  and  bearing 
aloft  the  white  banner  of  charity,  have  marched  to  the 
strains  of  music  down  the  streets  of  nearly  every  town  in 
i.his  great  northwest.  This  public  endorsement  from  the 
very  flower  of  the  manhood  of  our  territory  has  been  one 
of  the  greatest  factors  in  promoting  the  growth  and  pros- 
perity of  our  order.  It  seems  almost  that  nearly  every 
Woodman  is  an  orator,  at  least  every  neighbor  under- 
stands our  system  and  its  workings,  and  is  able  to  tell  it 
to  the  world.    These  magnificent  public  addresses  on 


298 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


Woodcraft  have  done  much  to  make  ours  the  most  popu- 
lar order  in  the  jurisdiction,  if  not  in  the  United  States. 

It  has  become  a  custom  to  organize  certain  portions  of 
the  state  into  what  is  called  Log-Rolling  "  or  ''Picnic" 
associations.  Each  Camp  sends  a  delegate  to  these 
associations,  which  have  regularly-elected  officers  and  laws 
for  governing  it.  Funds  are  usually  raised  by  assessing 
each  member  in  the  association  five  or  ten  cents.  The 
greatest  and  oldest  of  these  associations  is  the  Northern 
Illinois  and  Southern  Wisconsin  Picnic  Association.  The 
great  gatherings  of  this  association  at  Rockford,  Beloit, 
Elgin,  and  Sycamore,  are  still  fresh  in  the  minds  of  the 
readers  of  the  Woodman.  The  world  has  probably  never 
known  a  kindred  association  of  equal  magnitude  and  suc- 
cess. Its  tenth  annual  meeting  will  be  held  at  Madison, 
Wisconsin,  during  the  session  of  the  next  Head  Camp, 
and  it  will  no  doubt  eclipse  all  former  meetings. 

The  Central  Illinois  Picnic  Association  has  had  great 
meetings  at  Havana,  Peoria,  Springfield,  and  other  places. 
It  had  no  meeting  in  1894,  but  the  neighbors  will  see  to 
it  that  it  is  revived  and  continued  in  its  great  work. 

The  organization  of  the  Southern  Illinois  Picnic  As- 
sociation was  brought  about  by  the  efforts  of  the  Camp  at 
Jerseyville,  Illinois,  where  the  first  meeting  was  held  in 
September,  1892.  The  meetings  at  Greenville,  Illinois, 
July  4th,  1893,  and  at  Litchfield,  August  1st,  1894,  were 
immense  gatherings,  and  give  promise  of  a  great  future 
for  this  association.  The  meeting  in  1895  will  be  held  at 
Carlinville,  Illinois. 

Similar  associations  should  be  formed  in  eastern  and 
southeastern  Illinois.  Danville  and  Decatur  are  both 
noted  for  their  great  Woodman  gatherings. 

The  Southeastern  Log-Roiling  Association  of  Nebraska 
is  one  of  the  greatest  in  the  jurisdiction.  The  picnics  at 
Lincoln,  Beatrice,  and  Omaha  will  long  be  remembered 
as  great  events  in  Woodcraft. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


299 


The  Southeastern  Kansas  Log-Roiling  Association  was 
organized  at  Weir  City  in  October,  1891.  Since  that  time 
splendid  meetings  have  been  held  at  Fort  Scott,  Ottawa, 
and  CofFeyville.  The  meeting  at  Coffeyville  this  year  was 
remarkable  in  every  respect.  The  parade  was  more  than 
one  mile  in  length.  The  next  meeting  will  be  held  at 
Fort  Scott,  in  1895. 

Iowa  has  just  begun  to  catch  the  impulse,  and  the 
Central  Iowa  Picnic  Association  was  organized  at  AVin- 
terset,  in  August,  1894,  and  includes  the  large  Camps  at 
Des  Moines,  Indianola,  and  other  towns  in  central  Iowa. 

Missouri,  although  the  last  state  admitted  into  the  jur- 
isdiction, is  now  thoroughly  organized  with  these  picnic 
associations.  The  Log  Rolling  Association  of  South- 
eastern Missouri  was  organized  at  Sullivan,  in  June, 
1894,  and  has  since  held  meetings  at  St.  Clair  and  other 
points.  The  Northwestern  Association  of  Missouri  had 
its  first  meeting  at  Kansas  City,  in  June,  1894,  and  is 
now  thoroughly  organized,  and  its  meeting  in  1895  will 
be  better,  if  possible,  than  the  meeting  in  1894.  Through 
the  efforts  of  State  Deputy  Thornton  four  of  these  asso- 
ciations are  now  organized  in  Missouri,  and  actively  at 
work. 

While  there  are  none  of  these  associations  in  Mich- 
gan,  Minnesota,  North  or  South  Dakota,  yet  these  states 
have  their  great  gatherings  in  Woodcraft.  The  state 
officers  of  Minnesota  are  very  active  in  promoting  these 
public  gatherings.  It  will  not  be  long  until  every  state 
in  the  jurisdiction  is  thoroughly  organized  into  picnic 
associations. 

But  these  gatherings  in  the  summer  months  are  not  all 
the  work  done  in  this  line.  Public  banquets  and  enter- 
tainm.ents  occur  more  frequently  in  the  winter.  The 
state  meetings  to  be  held  December  27,  1894,  in  each 
state  will  be  gatherings  that  will  be  productive  of  great 
good  for  Woodcraft.     Every   delegate   will   go  home 


300 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


knowing  more  about  the  order,  enthusiastic  in  its  sup- 
port, and  ready  to  tell  his  Camp  about  its  good  work. 

We  are  proud  of  our  public  gatherings,  and  justly  so, 
for  they  excel  those  of  all  other  fraternities. 


In  Conclusion. 


On  this  first  day  of  October,  A.  D.,  1894,  we  can  look 
back  across  the  ^^ears  at  the  birth,  early  struggles,  and 
proud  achievements  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  Amer- 
ica with  an  abiding  conviction  that  its  future  will  place 
it  in  the  very  front  rank  of  fraternal  insurance.  To-day 
we  number  112,000  members  in  good  standing,  the  very 
flower  of  the  manhood  of  this  great  Northwest.  We  have 
2,500  local  Camps  in  good  standing  and  working  order. 
We  do  not  owe  a  dollar  to  a  living  man,  and  have  a  bal- 
ance of  $120,000  in  our  general  fund.  Our  orders  can 
be  cashed  in  any  bank  in  the  jurisdiction  w^ithout  dis- 
count. We  disburse  monthly,  in  round  numbers,  the 
enormous  sum  of  $100,000  to  the  beneficiaries  of  our  de- 
ceased members.  Our  cost  of  insurance  has  remained 
the  same  for  the  last  five  years,  and  is  the  cheapest  of 
any  established  society  in  the  world.  The  cost  has  never 
been  more  than  $4.95  per  $1,000  for  each  year  at  the 
average  age  of  the  membership.  Our  growth  is  phenom- 
enal, and  for  the  first  nine  months  of  1894  29,404  new 
men  were  enrolled  in  our  ranks,  and  401  new  Camps  or- 
ganized. Entire  harmony  prevails  with  the  manage- 
ment, and  every  department  of  the  order  is  working  in 
conformity  with  the  great  system. 

We  must  look  into  the  future  and  provide  for  the  com- 
ing years.  The  next  Head  Camp  convenes  at  Madison, 
Wisconsin,  June  4,  1895,  and  will  have  important  mat- 
ters for  consideration.    The  question  of  enlarging  our 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book, 


301 


jurisdiction  and  the  question  of  establishing  an  emer- 
gency fund  must  receive  action.  The  reports  of  the 
Head  Officers  and  of  the  Law  Committee  with  their  sev- 
eral recommendations  will  be  in  the  hands  of  the  delegates 
many  months  before  the  Head  Camp  meets,  and  they 
will  have  time  to  carefully  consider  these  matters,  so  that 
when  the  time  comes  they  can  act  with  mature  judg- 
ment. The  great  success  of  the  order  is  due  to  the 
system  and  to  the  loyalty  of  the  brainy  workingmen 
who  compose  its  membership.  Tt  is  the  duty  of  the  of- 
ficers and  delegates  at  the  next  Head  Camp  to  broaden 
the  foundations  upon  which,  before  many  years,  will 
rest  a  great  structure  that  will  afford  protection  for  the 
families  of  more  than  a  million  of  freemen. 


BCRN-  DIED: 
Clark  County,  ruinois,  March  1,  1846.  Urbana,  Illinois,  May  10.  1892 


"  Unveil  thy  bosom,  faithful  tomb ! 

Take  this  new  treasure  to  thy  trust! 
And  g-{ve  these  sacred  relics  room 
To  slumber  in  the  silent  dust." 


He  was  a  charter  member  of  Urbana  Camp,  No.  269,  Urbana,  Illinois,  organized 
November  26,  1886,  to  whom  was  issued  benefit  certificate  No.  8,177,  for  $2,000,  pay- 
able at  death  to  his  beloved  children,  Lueva  May  Mathews,  daughter,  and  Claude  M. 
Mathews,  son. 

He  v.-as  a  delegate  from  Camp  No.  269  to  the  Head  Camp  Modem  Woodmen  of 
America,  which  convened  a:  Springfield,  Illinois,  November  11,  1890,  at  which  meet- 
ing he  was  elected  a  member  or  the  Beard  c:  Directors. 

At  the  first  meeting  of  the  Board  c:  Directors  he  was  elected  its  Chairman,  which 
position  he  held  at  the  date  of  his  decease. 


Hon.  Milton  W.  Mathews  (deceased),  Ex-Chairman  Board  of  Directors, 
Modern  Woodmen  of  America,  Urbana,  111. 


Mxercises  in  Memory  of  the  late  Hon. 
Milton  W,  Mathews. 


l_i      ill  the  evening,  for  the  purpose 
1^^^  of  holding  memorial  exercises 
ii^  honor  of  Milton  W.  Mathews, 
late  Chairman  of  the  Board  of 
r^^^  Directors. 


HE  HEAD  CAMP  at  Omaha  was 
called  to  order  at  half-})ast  seven 


After  the  invocation  by  Head 


Chaplain  F.  F.  Farmaloe,  Neighbor  E.  S.  Smith,  of 
Illinois,  presented  the  following  resolutions  on  behalf  of 
Neighbor  Bertram  of  Kansas,  Chairman  of  the  Committee 
on  Resolutions  : 

Whereas,  It  hath  pleased  an  All-Wise  Providence  to 
take  from  us  the  late  Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Di- 
rectors, Hon.  Milton  W.  Mathews,  of  Urbana,  Illinois, 
therefore  be  it 

Resolved,  That  in  the  death  of  Chairman  Mathews  the 
order  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  has  lost  a 
worthy  and  valuable  member. 

That  by  his  integrity,  sterling  worth,  and  active  care 
for  the  interest  of  our  order,  he  has  won  the  high  esteem 
and  love  of  all  its  well-wishers. 

That  we  sincerely  mourn  his  death,  and  realize  that 
therein  this  order  has  lost  one  of  its  most  upright,  genial, 
earnest,  and  eloquent  advocates. 

Resolved,  That  we  deeply  sympathize  with  his  bereaved 
widow,  son,  and  daughter  in  their  extreme  sorrow. 


20 


306 


The  Woodmmi^s  Hand-Buok. 


Resolved,  That  the  Head  Clerk  be  and  is  hereby  in- 
structed to  cause  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  to  be  en- 
grossed and  transmitted  to  the  family  of  Neighbor 
Mathews.   

After  the  reading  of  the  above  resolutions,  Neighbor 
J.  G.  Johnson,  of  the  Board  of  Directors,  delivered  the 
following  address  on  behalf  of  the  Board  of  Directors  : 

"There  are  in  this  audience  many  who  were  delegates  to 
that  most  remarkable  of  all  Woodmen  gatherings,  the 
Springfield  Head  Camp  of  1890.  Many  a  time  during 
the  past  two  years  have  my  thoughts  drifted  back  to  that 
historic  little  city,  the  capital  of  Illinois,  and  to  the  never- 
to-be-forgotten  sessions  of  that  great  gathering.  I  can 
easily  recall  the  great  capitol  building,  with  its  grand  ap- 
proaches, towering  dome,  massive  columns,  spacious  cor- 
ridors, broad  stairways,  and  ample  legislative  halls. 

^'  I  have  in  my  mind's  eye  the  great  representative's  hall, 
in  which  the  Head  Camp  met,  with  its  immense  audi- 
torium set  with  circling  seats,  and  with  its  front  and  rear 
galleries,  its  committee  rooms  and  lobbies,  its  throne-like 
speaker's  stand,  canopied  with  our  nation's  colors,  and 
flanked  on  either  side  with  portraits  of  those  two  great 
sons  of  Illinois  —  the  intellectual  giants  of  the  epoch  in 
which  their  state  sprang  into  national  fame. 

"I  stand  in  fancy  to-day,  as  I  stood  through  many  of 
those  memorable  sessions,  away  over  in  one  corner  of  the 
rear  of  that  great  meeting-room,  and  look  over  its  crowded 
interior. 

"  Occupying  all  the  right  side  of  the  room  was  the 
Illinois  delegation,  nearly  five  hundred  strong.  Crowded 
together  on  the  left  side  was  Nebraska,  Iowa,  Wisconsin, 
Minnesota,  Michigan,  Dakota,  and  Kansas,  nearly  five 
hundred  strong.  Surrounding  all  and  filling  the  gal- 
leries were  hundreds  of  watching  Woodmen,  well  know- 
ing that  the  battle  had  been  set  in  array,  and  absorbingly 
interested  in  its  outcome.  *' 


The  Wuodman's  Hand-Booh. 


307 


That  was  the  time  when  men's  souls  were  tried — when 
the  very  life  of  this  great  order  of  ours  hung  trembling 
in  the  balance  —  Illinois  on  the  one  hand,  and  all  the  re- 
maining states  on  the  other. 

It  had  been  whispered  about  that  the  Illinois  delegates 
had  held  a  secret  caucus  ;  that  organization  had  been 
effected  ;  that  our  ranks  were  full  of  practiced  politicians, 
and  that  it  had  been  agreed  that  one  man  —  the  most  ex- 
pert and  experienced  member  of  the  delegation  —  had 
been  selected  to  lead  her  forces. 

^'Accounts  of  this  great  civic  warrior  were  passed  from 
neighbor  to  neighbor,  and  when  they  finally  reached  me 
they  had  grown  to  such  proportions  that  it  would  not 
haye  surprised  me  to  haye  found  in  him,  upon  closer  ac- 
quaintance— 

"  '  A  monster  of  such  hideous  mien, 

That  to  be  hated  need  but  to  be  seen.' 

Finally,  I  remember  that  some  trembling  Kansan  came 
to  me,  as  I  was  perched  among  the  Kansas  delegates  sur- 
yeying  the  situation,  and  whispered  to  me  that  the  Illinois 
Achilles  Avas  eyen  at  that  moment  addressing  the  Head 
Camp.  I  looked  where  he  indicated,  and  saw  away  over 
by  the  Head  Clerk's  desk,  among  the  Illinoisans,  a  strik- 
ing figure  —  a  man  not  tall,  but  well  formed,  and  with 
the  figure,  the  face,  and  the  manner  of  a  statesman,  a 
classic  head  crowned  with  iron-gra}^  hair,  and  a  face 
which  beamed  with  good  nature  while  he  spoke,  and  in 
every  lineament,  from  the  broad  brow  from  which  tke 
gray  hair  was  brushed,  and  from  under  which  a  pair  of 
bright  eyes  twinkled  with  mirth,  to  the  curious  little  curl 
at  the  end  of  his  gray  beard,  their  could  be  read  an  open 
story  of  intelligence,  ability,  candor,  courage,  and  humor. 

This  was  Milton  W.  Mathews,  our  lamented  Director 
and  neighbor  —  to  honor  whose  memory,  and  to  place  the 
tribute  of  affection  upon  Avhose  tomb,  this  Head  Camp 
has  set  apart  this  hour. 


308 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


"  It  is  needless  for  me  to  say  that  when  we  came  to  know 
him  we  forgot  to  dread  him.  One  of  his  inimitable 
stories  would  upset  every  argument,  and  distrust  among 
delegates  vanished  before  his  reassuring  manner. 

"  He  at  once  took  a  commanding  position  in  the  sessions 
of  that  Head  Camp,  and  by  his  frankness  and  neighborly 
spirit  did  much  to  inculcate  and  cherish  that  confidence 
and  esteem  among  neighbors  which,  starting  at  Spring- 
field, was  taken  into  nine  states  by  the  returning  dele- 
gates, has  ever  since  been,  and  is  now,  the  sheet-anchor 
of  this  order's  prosperity. 

^'  When  the  officers  for  the  ensuing  term  came  to  be 
selected  he  was  made  one  of  the  Directors  ;  and  I  often 
think  how  singular  it  was  that  when  the  clause  of  our 
fundamental  law  constituting  the  Board  of  Directors  was 
under  consideration,  he  rose  and  pointed  out  that  no  pro- 
vision had  been  made  for  the  appointment  of  a  successor 
in  case  one  of  the  board  should  die.  The  defect  was 
remedied  as  he  suggested,  and  his  own  death  first  called 
for  the  exercise  of  the  power  conferred. 

"At  the  first  meeting  of  the  board  he  became  its  chair- 
man, and  it  was  an  honor  not  only  worthily  but  willingly 
bestowed.  He  soon  made  every  member  his  warm  friend, 
and  by  his  timely  suggestions  and  wise  council  always 
harmonized  differences,  reduced  friction,  and  made  every 
session  which  he  attended  a  pleasure  to  every  one  who 
participated. 

"When  we  first  commenced  our  association  upon  the 
board  no  one  would  have  dreamed  that  our  number 
would  be  broken  by  his  death.  We  were  all  pretty 
rugged,  but  no  one  seemed  stronger  nor  better  able  to 
endure  hard  and  protracted  sessions  than  he.  At  all  of 
the  sessions  of  the  board  held  during  the  first  year  after 
its  organization,  no  one  seemed  to  enjoy  better  health 
than  our  chairman;  but  in  the  winter  of  1891-'92  we 
noticed  that  he  wasn't  well;  that  there  were  frequent 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


309 


times  when  he  seemed  unable  to  get  his  breath,  and  when 
he  began  taking  precautions  against  colds,  and  frequently 
brought  medicine  with  him  to  the  meetings,  then  we, 
who  were  never  sick,  began  to  be  solicitous  about  his 
health.  But  instead  of  improving  we  noticed  that  the 
sick  spells  came  more  frequently  and  were  more  violent. 
I  remember  meeting  him  at  Peoria  early  in  the  spring  of 
1892,  on  some  business  of  the  order.  He  was  taken  sick 
at  the  hotel  and  I  sat  up  with  him  all  night,  and  I  really 
feared  he  would  die  before  morning.  His  breath  would 
almost  entirely  fail,  and  when  I  would  raise  him  up  and 
fan  him  he  would  revive.  He  was  constantly  in  pain  and 
couldn't  sleep,  and  yet  he  seemed  to  be  always  thinking 
more  of  the  trouble  he  was  making  for  me  than  of  his 
own  suffering.  Toward  morning,  at  his  request,  I  went 
to  the  physician's  room  and  procured  some  morphine, 
but  when  I  prepared  it  for  him  he  hesitated,  and  said, 
'  I  wouldn't  like  to  take  this  and  go  to  sleep  and  never 
wake;  I  am  not  quite  ready  for  that  yet.'  Such  was  his 
will-power,  however,  that  after  a  fitful  sleep  of  two  hours, 
induced  by  the  drug,  he  arose,  dressed,  took  a  carriage 
for  the  depot  and  the  train  for  his  home  in  Urbana;  and 
although  he  had  been  sick  there  for  three  days,  and  as 
near  death  as  most  men  ever  come  and  recover,  he  would 
not  have  me  telegraph  his  wife,  but  instead  had  me  tele- 
graph for  a  carriage  to  meet  the  train  at  I'rbana  to  take 
him  home,  so  that  his  family  should  not  be  distressed 
until  he  could  be  there  to  reassure  them.  Shortly  after 
this  I  visited  him  at  his  home,  and  I  think  I  never  saw 
a  man  who  took  more  interest  in,  or  more  comfort  with 
his  family.  His  wife  is  gentle  and  refined,  and  minis- 
tered to  his  comfort  as  only  an  affectionate  woman  can; 
and  I  could  easily  see  that  the  lovely  young  daughter, 
just  blooming  into  womanhood,  and  the  manly  boy,  who 
reflects  his  father's  image,  were  his  hourly  pride  and  the 
spring  of  his  ambition. 


310 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


"  Along  in  the  spring  months  we  missed  him  at  our  meet- 
ings. He  would  promise  us  (and  himself)  that  he  would 
come,  but  we  would  see  him  often  but  for  a  day,  and 
sometimes  not  at  all.  Then  April  came,  and  as  the  air 
was  more  balmy  we  hoped  that  he  could  go  with  the 
other  officers  to  Kansas  ;  but  when  the  time  came  he  was 
too  ill  ;  but,  although  confined  to  his  home,  his  thoughts 
were  with  us,  and  at  every  point  we  would  find  a  letter 
from  him  wishing  us  a  pleasant  journey,  and  adding  a 
few  words  of  regret  to  be  read  to  the  neighbors  at  our 
meeting. 

''From  that  time  it  was  a  struggle  for  the  mastery  be- 
tween this  determined  man  and  the  king  of  terrors.  Day 
after  day  disease  fastened  to  him  more  tenaciously  ;  day 
after  day  the  power  of  resistance  became  weaker,  but  the 
brave  spirit  never  faltered,  and  his  determination  never 
wavered.  Kind  hearts  sympathized  and  kind  hands 
ministered,  and  anxiou3  eyes  watched  the  unequal  con- 
test, but  at  last  there  came  a  day  when  his  physicians 
tearfully  told  him  and  his  that  the  days  of  watching  and 
ministry  would  soon  be  ended,  and  that  mortality  would 
again  surrender  to  the  grim  monster  —  death.  They  say 
he  never  quailed  when  they  told  him,  but  like  a  true  man, 
realizing  that  his  end  was  near,  he  deliberately  set  his 
house  in  order,  and  silently  waited  the  coming  of  the 
sombre  guest.  His  business  was  all  arranged,  not  only 
fo'r  the  present  but  for  the  years  to  come  ;  and  letters  of 
farewell  dictated  to  dear  friends,  telling  them  that  death 
was  near,  but  that  he  did  not  fear  to  die.  The  future  oc- 
cupied his  thoughts,  and  he  told  one  near  to  him  that  he 
felt  a  confidence  that  there  was  for  him  a  share  in  the 
great  atonement  made  once  for  all  men  on  Calvary. 

"And  so,  day  after  day,  strong  in  mind  though  weak  in 
body,  he  lay  and  thought  and  watched  for  the  messenger. 
What  a  vigil !  How  dear  life  must  have  seemed  to  him. 
He  had  tasted  many  of  its  sweets,  but  the  best  seemed 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book, 


311 


just  opening  before  him.  He  had  reached  that  place 
where  effort  might  be  relaxed,  and  things  desired  come 
easily  and  abundantly.  What  a  panorama  of  his  own  life 
must  have  passed  before  him  as  he  lived  it  over  and  over 
again  in  those  last  brief  days  !  His  childhood  days  in  Il- 
linois and  Indiana  ;  his  early  struggles  in  the  school-room 
and  the  law  office  ;  his  legal  career  from  a  struggling  begin- 
ning to  an  honorable  and  lucrative  position  at  the  bar 
of  his  state  ;  his  political  career,  from  his  election  as 
state's  attorney  to  the  presidency  of  the  senate  ;  his  jour- 
nalistic experience,  from  an  obscure  country  editor  to  the 
presidency  of  his  state  editorial  association ;  as  he 
thought  of  the  home  he  had  made,  so  soon  to  be  left  for- 
ever ;  the  wife  and  loved  boy  and  girl,  so  soon  to  be  left 
alone  ;  the  anxious  and  tender  friends  on  ever  side,  so 
soon  to  be  sorrowing  at  his  grave  ;  as  he  reluctantly  re- 
linquished forever  the  dreams  of  greater  honors  and 
pleasures  which  he  well  knew  the  future  had  in  store  for 
him,  it  must  have  been  hard  for  him  to  give  it  all  up  and 
be  content  to  die  with  so  much  to  live  for.  But  I  am  told 
no  word  of  complaint  or  regret  passed  his  lips  in  all 
those  days  of  waiting  ;  but,  facing  the  inevitable  with 
calmness  and  courage,  he  awaited  the  coming  of  the 
messenger  — 

"  'Like  one  who  wraps  the  drapery  of  his  couch  about  him, 
And  lies  down  to  pleasant  dreams.' 

On  Tuesday,  May  10th,  1892,  the  end  came,  silently 
but  surely,  and  the  wires  carried  to  all  the  officers  of  our 
order  the  sad,  but  not  unexpected,  intelligence  that  our 
beloved  fellow  officer  and  neighbor  was  dead. 

"  On  Saturday,  May  14th,  the  funeral  took  place  at  Ur- 
bana,  and  was  attended  by  many  of  our  Head  Officers, 
It  was  the  largest  funeral  I  ever  attended.  Five  thous- 
and of  his  friends  crowded  into  the  great  Mathews  Hall 
at  the  Illinois  State  University,  while  a  procession,  civic 


312 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


and  military,  over  a  mile  long,  brought  the  casket  from 
his  home  and  laid  it,  covered  with  flowers,  before  them. 
The  large  stage  provided  room  for  the  governor  and  state 
officers,  dear  friends  from  the  state  senate  and  house  of 
representatives,  and  the  University  of  Illinois,  the  city 
officers  of  Champ'aign  and  Urbana,  the  county  bar  asso- 
ciation, the  chief  officers  of  this  and  other  like  societies. 
Many  eloquent  friends  recited  his  virtues  and  mourned 
his  untimely  end.  The  choir  from  the  State  University 
sweetly  sang  his  favorite  hymns,  and  the  ministers  gently 
spoke  the  words  of  admonition  and  comfort,  and  then  the 
vast  throng  passed  reverently  by  the  open  casket  and 
looked  for  the  last  time  upon  the  features,  calm  in  death, 
of  their  friend  and  neighbor. 

It  was  a  sombre  day  ;  the  rain  fell  steadily,  as  though 
the  heavens,  even,  were  joining  in  the  universal  grief ;  and 
at  the  grave  when  the  last  sad  rites  were  finished,  the 
apple  blossoms,  wet  with  the  falling  rain,  fluttered  down 
upon  the  lowered  coffin,  nature's  reminder  that  after 
things  which  perish  there  springs  eternal  the  perfect  fruit. 

Milton  W.  Mathews  was  a  successful  lawyer.  He  un- 
derstood the  frame-work,  the  anatomy,  the  foundations  of 
law  ;  was  familiar  with  tlie  great  streams. and  currents 
and  tides  of  authority.  He  had  breadth  and  scope,  learn- 
ing and  logic,  and  above  all  the  sense  of  justice  which 
regulated  every  act  in  his  professional  career. 

^'  Milton  W.  Mathews  was  a  model  representative.  Faith- 
ful and  incorruptible,  he  believed  that  his  constituents 
were  entitled  to  the  fruit  of  his  experience,  to  his  highest 
thought  and  his  best  efl'ort.  He  was  loyal  to  his  own  con- 
victions, loyal  to  the  party  to  whose  fortunes  he  had  allied 
himself,  but  ever  courteous,  honorable,  and  fair  as  an 
adversary,  and  counted  in  the  ranks  of  his  political  op- 
ponents many  of  his  warmest  personal  friends.  In 
worthily  serving  the  state,  he  reflected  upon  the  district 
he  represented  the  honors  which  his  services  earned.  He 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


313 


neither  bought  nor  sold  nor  mortgaged  his  honor  or 
himself,  and  throughout  his  political  career  coula  say 
with  Aristides,  'these  are  clean  hands.' 

Milton  W.  Mathews  was  a  polished  orator.  With  a 
striking  face  and  figure,  an  intellectuality  of  the  highest 
order,  a  vocabulary  boundless  in  extent  and  rich  in  illus- 
tration and  metaphor,  with  that  indefinable  something 
called  magnetism,  in  an  unlimited  degree,  he  filled  tlie 
stage,  he  captivated  the  audience,  and  whether  con- 
vinced or  not  by  his  reasoning  and  logic,  no  hearer  ever 
failed  to  accord  him  the  highest  praise  for  liis  manner 
of  presenting  his  subject. 

''Milton  AY.  Mathews  was  an  ideal  Woodman.  Proud 
of  the  order,  and  jealous  for  its  advancement  in  numbers 
and  influence,  and  yet  anxious  that  its  growth  should  be 
of  sound  timber  and  its  influence  in  the  best  direction. 
Genial  and  friendly  with  his  fellow  officers,  and  still  set- 
ting each  an  example  of  industry  and  integrity.  Com- 
petent to  worthily  fill  the  highest  positions  to  which  his 
duties  called  him,  and  still  a  neighbor  in  the  fullest 
sense  with  the  great  body  of  our  membership  ;  honorable, 
sociable,  charitable,  he  filled  the  measure  of  an  ideal 
Woodman,  and  in  every  place  and  work  assigned  Iiim 
he  honored  the  order  which  honored  him. 

"At  the  full  meridian  of  intellectual  greatness,  with 
many  years  of  usefulness  to  himself,  his  family,  this 
order,  and  the  state  still  before  him  ;  at  the  time  when, 
perhaps,  more  than  ever  before,  his  talents  and  leader- 
ship were  required  in  this  and  kindred  orders  to  which 
he  was  attached,  this  good,  honest,  capable,  true,  and 
trusted  man  and  neighbor  has  closed  his  eyes  in  the 
dreamless  sleep  of  death. 

"To  the  stern  decree  of  an  all-wise  and  overruling  Prov- 
idence we  bow  with  grief-stricken  hearts.  At  the  portals 
of  his  grave  every  officer  and  neighbor  in  this  great  fra- 
ternity mourns. 


314 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Book. 


'  He  did  not  fall 
Like  drooping  flowers  that  no  man  noticeth  ; 
,  But  like  a  great  branch  of  some  stately  tree, 
Bent  in  the  tempest  and  flung  down  to  death, 
Thick  with  green  leafage  ;  so  that  piteously 
Each  passer  by  that  ruin  shuddereth. 
And  saith,  "  The  gap  this  breach  hath  left  is  wide. 
The  loss  thereof  can  never  be  supplied."  ' 

"As  a  born  leader  of  men,  as  statesman,  legislator,  law- 
yer, friend,  officer,  and  neighbor,  we  bonor  bim  and 
revere  his  memor}^ 

''To  the  loving  wife  and  son.  and  daughter,  to  his  state, 
and  to  us  he  has  left  a  legacy  greater,  better,  and  grander 
than  earthly  riches  —  a  good  name,  a  reputation  untar- 
nished, an  integrity  unimpaired. 

''The  grave  has  closed  over  him.  He  has  gone  to  that 
far  country,  invisible  and  unknown  to  mortals,  but  where 
every  sense  of  the  eternal  fitness  of  things  tells  us  there 
must  be  a  place  prepared  for  such  princely  souls.  But 
he  has  left  behind  him  his  words  and  his  works,  the 
magnetic  w^ords  which  inspire  loyalty  to  right,  and  the 
words  of  a  born  warrior  for  truth,  justice,  and  charity." 


At  the  conclusion  of  Neighbor  Johnson's  address,  the 
Head  Consul  called  upon  the  various  members  of  the 
Board  of  Directors  for  an  expression  of  their  sentiments, 
and  called  first  upon  Neighbor  J.  W.  White,  who  said  : 

"  Head  Consul  and  neighbors,  at  a  meeting  some  time 
ago  the  Board  of  Directors  requested  Neighbor  Johnson 
to  prepare  a  memorial  address  for  this  occasion,  which 
address  you  have  just  heard,  and  I  have  thought  that  his 
remarks,  while  in  his  own  language,  fully  express  the 
feelings  and  sentiments  of  the  officers  of  this  organiza- 
tion. As  an  opportunity  is  given,  however,  I  cannot 
forbear  saying  a  v/ord  to  add  to  the  tribute  so  grandly 
bestowed,  but  which  falls  far  short,  only  because  human 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


315 


language  is  inadequate  to  express  the  sentiments  of  all 
the  friends  and  neighbors  that  should  pay  tribute  to 
the  late  Senator  Mathews.  Not  only,  Head  Consul,  do 
we  pay  tribute  to  Senator  Mathews,  but  the  whole  state 
of  Illinois,  where  he  was  known,  paid  tribute  to  him. 
As  has  been  told  you,  there  were  gathered  the  governor 
and  state  officers,  and  many  members  of  the  different 
organizations  to  which  he  belonged  at  his  home,  in  the 
hall  that  was  erected  to  his  memory,  because  it  was  one 
of  his  monuments,  gathered  there  to  pay  that  final  trib- 
ute, the  last  tribute  it  was  possible  to  pay  him. 

But  as  I  think  of  Senator  Mathews,  I  think  of  him  as 
I  last  saw  him  while  there  was  breath  in  his  body.  It 
was  at  Peoria,  in  a  hotel.  I  said  to  him,  '  Senator,  you 
are  tired,  and  I  think  you  want  a  rest.  AVill  you  be 
with  us  at  our  next  meeting  ? '  '  Oh  yes,  I  will  be  with 
you  at  the  next  meeting.  I  am  a  little  tired,  but,  Neigh- 
bor White,  I  am  going  to  keep  my  benefit  certificate 
good.'  Senator  Mathews'  benefit  certificate  was  kept 
good,  and  he  has  had  the  reward. 

"Xot  only  have  that  wife  and  those  children  been  paid 
the  benefit  certificate  which  the  Modern  AVoodmen  of 
America  promised  him  that  they  Avould  pay,  but  a  higher 
and  greater  payment  has  been  made.  I  am  not  a  hero 
worshipper,  and  I  do  not  bow  at  the  shrine  of  mortal,  but 
I  do  bow  to  the  Cross  of  AVood  and  the  American  flag,  and 
these  alone.  It  may  be  that  when  mortals  are  called 
into  the  presence  of  the  Judge,  from  whose  decree  there 
is  no  appeal,  that  the  sentence  of  condemnation  may  not 
be  passed  on  the  weaknesses  of  mankind,  except  as  they 
are  unredeemed  by  the  virtues  of  life.  And  when  Sen- 
ator Mathews  came  before  that  great  Judge,  I  believe  the 
sente?ice  was  passed  in  his  favor,  because  no  man  had  a 
larger  heart  or  did  more  for  humanity  ;  no  man,  meas- 
ured as  we  measure  men,  who  had  more  friends  within 
the  circle  of  his  acquaintance. 


316 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh, 


He  said  to  us  at  one  time  :  '  I  want  you  to  come 
down  to  Urbana,  to  my  town,  some  time,  and  hold  a 
meeting  there  ;  but  wait  until  summer  comes  ;  wait  until 
the  flowers  are  in  bloom,  when  everything  looks  nice.' 
We  did  go  there  when  the  flowers  were  in  bloom,  but  the 
flowers  were  scattered  on  his  bier,  and  weeping  friends 
wet  them  with  their  tears. 

I  cannot  say  more  than  has  been  said  by  Neighbor 
Johnson,  nor  more  than  is  said  in  thought  by  every 
neighbor.  And  what  every  neighbor  would  say  of  Sen- 
ator Mathews,  ever}^  man  would  say,  because  they  were 
all  his  friends.  He  was  a  bright,  brilliant  genius,  a  wit, 
and  an  orator.  No  man  in  the  state  of  Illinois,  except 
one,  perhaps,  was  his  superior.  I  recall  being  in  Spring- 
field at  a  state  bar  association  where  there  was  assem- 
bled the  state  bar  at  a  banquet.  Many  of  the  members 
spoke,  and  to  close  Senator  Mathews  was  called.  He 
spoke,  and  after  he  was  through  the  laurels  were  all 
given  him.  His  wit  and  his  genius  were  such  that  all 
those  present,  and  there  were  present  men  who  were  ora- 
tors, paid  tribute  to  him  as  an  orator  —  'the  noblest 
Roman  of  them  all.' 

^'  Senator  Mathews  was  not  only  an  orator,  but  he  was 
also  a  warm  friend  and  a  warm  neighbor." 


Neighbor  C.  T.  Heydecker  succeeded  Neighbor  White, 
in  the  following  remarks: 

had  hoped  that  I  might  be  spared  this  sad  occasion; 
I  hoped  what  Neighbor  Johnson  had  prepared  on  behalf 
of  those  wdio  sat  in  close  council  with  Neighbor  Mathews 
would  be  allowed  to  stand  as  an  expression  for  all  of  us; 
but  it  has  been  seen  fit  by  our  Head  Consul  to  ask  us,  in 
this  unguarded  moment,  to  shed  a  tear  of  sympathy  and 
spread  a  blanket  of  greenness,  if  possible,  over  the  grave 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


317 


yet  hardly  made  green  by  nature.  Neighbors,  you  never 
knew  Milton  Mathews  as  we,  who  were  so  closely  associa- 
ted with  him,  did.  Silently,  two  years  ago,  the  board  sat 
down  in  solemn  conclave,  silently  and  alone,  and  with 
that  hero  of  heroes  entering  into  a  solemn  compact  to  use 
our  most  earnest  efforts  until  together  we  should,  by  his 
guiding  hand  and  assistance,  be  able  to  place  the  finan- 
cial affairs  of  the  order  in  a  better  condition.  Neighbor 
Mathews  did  his  part  nobly  —  the  greyest  hero  of  all. 
He  has  gone,  neighbors,  and  from  his  place,  which  we 
feel  safe  in  saying  has  been  assigned  him^  looks  down, 
with  guiding  hand  watching  over  us. 

"Milton  Mathews  was  a  AVoodman  in  every  sense;  and 
in  the  two  years  in  which  he  was  our  co-laborer  spent  a 
a  great  portion  of  his  time  in  advising,  in  helping,  in 
guiding  us;  and  ever  by  his  society  and  kind  words  en- 
couraged and  aided  us  in  our  work. 

''Milton  Mathews  has  gone;  and  while  it  may  be  re- 
gretted by  the  membership  at  large,  none  know  so  well 
the  loss  we  have  sustained,  and  no  one  mourns  it  more 
than  those  who  sat  close  beside  him  in  confiding,  earnest 
council.  The  Head  Officers  went  that  sad  May  morning 
and  sadly  gathered  around  the  remains  of  mortality  and 
bade  it  farewell.  To  Woodmen  men  like  Hon.  Milton 
Mathews  represent  a  type  of  character  worthy  of  imita- 
tion, worthy  of  recognition;  and  we  recognize  his  sterling 
qualities,  his  frankness,  his  noble  and  true  character  as  a 
man  and  Woodman." 


Neighbor  A.  R.  Talbot  :  ''  Head  Consul,  it  seems  un- 
necessary that  I  should  say  anything  in  addition  to  what 
has  been  said.  It  is  impossible  for  me  to  express  to  the 
neighbors  here  the  thoughts  that  fill  my  mind  to-night. 
I  think  I  knew  Senator  Matthews  perhaps  as  well  as  any 
one  could  know  a  man  with  two  years'  association  in 


318 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


business,  and  I  want  to  say  that  no  man  I  have  ever 
known  for  that  length  of  time  so  impressed  me  with  the 
great  sense  of  the  responsibility  resting  upon  one  holding 
a  position  of  trust,  as  did  Senator  Mathews.  He  was  a 
friend  of  the  order  of  Woodcraft  such  as  we  rarely  find. 
He  was  a  genuine  friend  to  his  immediate  associates  in 
the  work  of  the  order,  and  none,  aside  from  his  family, 
can  feel  his  loss  so  keenly  as  we.  In  the  management  of 
any  business  he-was  a  man  whose  chief  aim  and  object 
was  to  do  it  promptly,  honestly,  and  well. 

''The  great  struggle  in  the  life  of  Senator  Mathews 
seemed  to  be  to  do  anything  that  he  could  to  help  elevate 
those  around  him.  And  if  he  could  carry  their  burdens, 
it  was  to  him  a  pleasure  to  do  so.  The  highest  object 
that  Senator  Mathews  had  was  to  do  the  greatest  good 
possible.  His  efforts  we  all  know,  and  it  may  well  be  said 
of  him,  '  he  went  about  doing  good.' 

''  He  was  a  man  who  never  shrank  from  duty,  but  was 
always  ready  to  do  more  than  his  part.  He  delighted  in 
the  great  principles  which  we  believe  in.  He  always  en- 
deavored to  lift  the  cloud  from  those  that  were  in  dark- 
ness, and  to  say  some  encouraging  word  to  any  that 
seemed  in  doubt  or  oppressed.  Such  a  man,  it  seems  to 
me,  possesses  that  most  commendable  combination  of  the 
heart  and  head  that  go  to  make  a  great  man. 

"And  I  want  to  say,  neighbors,  only  one  word  more: 
that  while  we  sit  here  in  this  solemn  hour,  and  while  we 
have  been  considering  the  great  work  of  Senator  Mathews 
since  his  death,  I  am  convinced  tliat  in  the  month  of 
May,  when  bud  and  blossom  marked  the  changing  season, 
when  we,  with  light  hearts,  were  buny  about  our  daily 
toil,  Senator  Mathews,  brave  and  reconciled,  in  peace, 
went  sweeping  through  tlie  gates  of  the  New  Jerusalem. 
There  he  awaits  us.  And  all  that  we  can  say  is,  '  neigh- 
bor, good-bye;  we  will  be  with  you  in  the  morning.'  " 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


319 


The  Head  Consul  asked  Neighbor  E.  S.  Smith,  of 
Illinois,  to  close  the  remarks  on  the  resolutions  offered, 
which  he  did  in  the  following  language: 

"Head  Consul  and  Neighbors,  it  was  my  pleasure  to 
know  Senator  Mathews  something  more  than  twenty 
years  ago.  He  was  slightly  my  senior.  Senator  Mathews 
was  born  in  a  township  in  the  southern  part  of  Cham- 
paign county,  Illinois,  and  when  he  liad  grown  to  man- 
hood and  was  about  to  prepare  himself  for  the  practice  of 
law,  he  came  to  the  city  of  Urbana,  dependent  upon  his 
own  resources  for  support.  He  made  the  acquaintance 
of  some  young  men  there,  one  of  whom  was  an  attorney, 
who  were  engaged  during  some  of  their  spare  time  in  at- 
tending and  establishing  Good  Templar  organizations  in 
that  vicinity.  They  had  weekly  meetings,  and  invited 
'  Milt.  Mathews,'  as  he  was  called,  to  go  with  them 
This  lawyer  of  whom  I  spoke  was  a  very  logical,  method- 
ical, and  painstaking  man,  and  his  addresses  took  on 
that  nature.  After  the  meeting  was  over,  Milton  said: 
•  George,  why  don't  you  put  more  life  into  it ;  that  is 
what  you  want  to  do  ;  put  more  life  into  it ;  stir  them 
up.'  Well,  the  organizers  thought  perhaps  they  would 
have  some  help,  and  agreed  among  themselves  that  they 
would  call  on  '  Milt.'  at  the  next  meeting  for  a  speech. 
The  result  of  it  was,  after  that  Milton  had  all  the  speak- 
ing to  do.  There  was  no  use  for  the  prosy  lawyer. 
Milton  AV.  Mathews  was  a  natural  orator,  and  soon  be- 
came known  as  the  'silver-tongued  orator  of  Champaign 
county.' 

"  In  1876  it  was  my  pleasure  to  assist  in  his  nomination 
and  election  to  the  office  of  state's  attorney  of  Champaign 
county.  He  served  for  two  terms  faithfully  and  well  ; 
one  of  the  best  prosecutors  ever  in  that  position  in  the 
State  of  Illinois.  He  was  a  kind-hearted  man.  He 
prosecuted  no  man  with  the  bitterness  of  enmity.  He 
sought  to  bring  out  the  truth,  and  none  excelled  Milton 


320 


The  Woodmcm^s  Hand-Booh. 


W.  Mathews  in  the  ability  to  do  that.  He  had  no  ene- 
mies ;  he  had  opponents  many  times,  and  he  beat  them  ; 
but  it  was  always  done  in  so  pleasant  away  that,  however 
badly  they  were  defeated,  they  could  not  help  joining 
with  him  in  the  laugh  over  the  victor3^ 

His  pleasures  were  found  principally  at  home.  He  was 
not  a  society  man  ;  his  great  enjoyment  was  at  his  own 
fireside  with  his  family,  and  yet  with  his  friends  that  he 
met  at  his  office  or  on  the  street  he  never  had  anything 
but  pleasant  words,  and  his  society  was  sought  by  all. 
He  never  could  speak  to  you  without  the  bright  smile  and 
the  hearty  laugh  following.  He  entered  into  the  news- 
paper business  and  became  the  owner  of  the  Champaign 
County  Herald,  and  made  it  the  best  county  paper  in  the 
State  of  Illinois.  He  had  a  wealth  of  originality.  I  re- 
member one  illustration  of  this  :  It  is  proverbial,  I  be- 
lieve, that  the  church  organizations  ask  the  newspapers 
to  insert  many  notices  for  them  and  render  advertising 
services  free  of  charge. 

Neighbor  Mathews  printed  some  postal  cards  some- 
thing like  this  :  'To  the  members  of  this  congregation  : 
You  are  notified  that  the  Champaign  County  Herald  is  the 
best  county  newspaper  published  in  the  State  of  Illinois, 
and  you  are  asked  to  subscribe  for  it.  Subscription  price, 
$2  per  year  in  advance.'  At  the  foot  was  a  request  to  the 
pastor  to  read  that  at  his  morning  services,  and  the  cards 
were  addressed  to  the  pastors  of  the  various  churches  in  the 
city.  He  awaited  their  reply.  One  pastor  read  the  card  ; 
some  of  them  took  it  kindly,  but  some  answered  quite 
bitterly,  and  he  published  their  replies  in  the  following 
paper,  with  such  remarks  as  only  Milton  W.  Mathews 
could  make,  raising  very  aptly  the  question  of  reciprocity 
in  advertising  —  all  so  neatly  done  as  to  attract  attention 
and  offend  no  one. 

He  was  original,  and  dealt  always  in  originality.  He 
was  always  good  natured.    He  was  always  faithful  to  his 


Officers  of  Camp  No.  120,  Omaha,  Nebraska,  1894. 

1.  C.  H.  T.  RiEPEN,  A^enerable  Consul.  4.   G.  R.  Young,  Manager. 

2.  George  D.  Rice,  Clerk.  5.   L.  B.  Hoyt,  Manager. 

3.  Simon  Trostler,  Adviser.  6.   J.  G.  Edmundson,  Seutry. 

7.   G.  F.  Elsasser,  Banker. 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


321 


friends.  He  never  forgot  a  friend,  and  never  forgot  a 
kindness  done  him.  He  was  always  humorous.  I  saw 
him  hardly  two  weeks  before  his  death  ;  he  was  unable 
to  get  out  of  his  room  ;  he  could  scarcely  speak  above  a 
whisper,  and  yet  he  had  the  same  jolly  smile,  and  the 
same  funny  anecdotes.  His  humor  and  pleasantness 
stayed  with  him  to  the  last. 

''When  he  became  fully  aware  that  the  end  was  near, 
and  the  family  was  called  around  him,  he  was  telling 
them  good-bye,  and  was  distributing  some  of  his  personal 
effects.  He  gave  his  boy,  a  lad  of  thirteen  years,  I  think, 
a  uniform  which  he  wore,  and  his  sword  and  hat.  If  you 
knew  Senator  Mathews,  you  know  he  was  quite  portly  in 
the  latter  years  of  his  life,  and  he  said  :  '  My  son,  you 
will  soon  be  large  enough  for  the  sword,  you  will  soon  fill 
the  hat,  but  it  will  be  a  good  while,  son,  before  you  can 
fill  out  those  pants.' 

"  Especially  prominent  in  the  individuality  of  Neighbor 
Mathews  was  his  anxiety  to  do  something  to  assist  others, 
or  in  some  way  add  to  their  pleasure.  It  delighted  him 
to  make  others  happy.  He  watched  for  the  opportunity, 
and  always  improved  it. 

"  No  one  who  knew  Senator  Mathews  could  have  but  the 
kindest  feelings  for  him,  and  I  believe  that  in  his  life  the 
world  will  be  benefitted  even  in  the  far  future. 

"  Head  Consul,  I  would  move  that  the  address  of  Neigh- 
bor Johnson  be  spread  upon  the  journal  of  this  Head 
Camp,  and  published  with  the  published  proceedings." 


It  was  moved  to  amend  the  motion  of  Neighbor  Smith 
by  including  all  of  the  speeches  made  at  these  memorial 
exercises,  which  amendment  was  seconded.  Before  put- 
ting the  motion.  Head  Consul  Northcott  said  : 

"  I  am  sorry  that  the  time  is  so  limited  that  other  neigh- 
bors cannot  give  an  expression  of  their  sentiments,  as  I 

21 


322 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


know  many  of  you  would  like  to  do.  This  evening's 
memorial  exercises  tipify  more  than  anything  else  the 
great  possibilities  and  benefits  of  the  fraternal  features  of 
our  order.  No  neighbor  who  has  listened  to-night  but 
will  go  home  with  a  higher  appreciation  of  the  fraternal 
side  of  this  order. 

We  have  listened  with  admiration  to  that  great  epic 
from  Director  Johnson  ;  we  have  listened  with  fraternal 
admiration  to  those  words  of  love  that  came  from  his  as- 
sociate officers  and  friends.  I  remember  that  I  received 
a  letter  from  his  private  secretary,  which  read  :  '  Senator 
Mathews  desires  me  to  say  to  you,  Neighbor  Northcott, 
that  he  is  going  to  die,  but  that  he  will  die  bravely.' 
.  "  How  grand  it  is  !  Here  are  neighbors  who  have  never 
met  Neighbor  Mathews,  but  because  he  was  bound  to 
them  by  that  tie  of  fraternity,  that  tie  of  Woodcraft,  they 
all  honor  his  memory.  And  how  it  will  be  appreciated 
by  his  family  !  There  is  a  great  deal  in  the  uncovered 
and  bowed  head  at  the  grave  of  a  neighbor. 

"  '  He  was  a  man  whom  the  spoils  of  office  could  not  buy ; 
A  man  of  honor,  a  man  who  would  not  lie.'  " 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  Head  Consul's  remarks,  the 
resolutions,  as  presented  by  the  Committee  on  Resolu- 
tions, were  adopted  unanimously  by  a  rising  vote.  And 
the  memorial  exercises  were  closed. 


With  the  Axe,  the  Wedge,  and  Beetle 
Dismal  forests  have  been  cleared. 
*  *  *  *  * 

Work  we  will!  our  cause  is  just. 
Charity  our  hope  and  trust.** 


I/ist  of  Some  of  the  Public  Speakers  on 
Woodcraft. 


ILLINOIS. 

Hon,  W.  A.  Northcott,  Greenville.  Hon.  W.  R.  Jewell,  Danville. 
Maj.  C.  W.  Hawes,  Fulton.  Hon.  H.  Clay  Wilson,  Springfield. 

Hon.  J.  W.  White,  Rock  Falls.      Judge  Jas.  Oeighton,  Springfield. 
Gen.  J.  N.  Reece,  Springfield.       Hon.  Jas.  M.  Graham,  Springfield. 
Hon.  C.  T.  Heydecker,  Waukegan.  Hon.  E.  S.  Smith,  Springfield. 
Rev.  F.  F.  Farmaloe,  Rockford.     M.  Quackenbush,  Dundee. 
Judge  C.  J.  Lindley,  Greenville.    Hon.  E.  A.  Nye,  Danville. 
Hon.  W.  A.  Rodenberg,  Rev.  J.  M.  Robinson,  El  Paso. 

East  St.  Louis.         Hon.  Frank  Joslyn,  Elgin. 
Hon.  W.  I.  Klein,  Barry.  Judge  A.  M.  Cavan,  El  Paso. 


IOWA. 

Hon.  Perry  Perkins,  Des  Moines.  C.  G.  Saunders,  Council  Bluffs. 
Dr.  I.  L.  Potter,  Ackley.  J.  R.  Carrothers,  Lincoln,  Neb. 

John  Roberts,  Ackley.  Dr.  E.  R.  Hutchins,  Des  Moines. 

Dr.  I.  H.  Fry,  Marshalltown.         Rev.  F.  Stanley  Adams,  Keosauqua. 


MISSOURI 

W.  W.  Wertenberger,  St.  Joseph.  S.  C.  Emerson,  St.  Clair. 
D.  I.  Thornton,  Kansas  City.         Dr.  F.  M.  Martin,  Maryville. 
Hon.  J.  M.  Jones,  Kansas  City.       John  A.  Sidney,  Hannibal. 
Hon.  Geo.  L.  Walls,  Kansas  City.  Hon.  A.  W.  Florea,  Jefferson  City. 
H.  G.  Parcell,  Kirksville.  W.  C.  Sherrill,  Excelsior  Springs. 


NEBRASKA. 

Dr.  A.  O,  Faulkner,  Lincoln.  Hon,  Wm.  J.  Bryan,  Lincoln. 

Capt.  W.  H.  Woodward,  Lincoln.  C.  C.  McNish,  Wisner. 

Rev.  Charles  Shepard,  Lincoln.  Dr.  S.  F.  Ashby,  Fairmont. 

D.  C.  Zink,  Grand  Island.  George  Morrow,  Omaha. 
Hon.  A.  R.  Talbot,  Lincoln. 

KANSAS. 

Hon,  J.  G.  Johnson,  Peabody.  Hon.  J.  W.  Breidenthal,  Topeka. 

Dr.  Frank  Swallow,  Valley  Falls.  Dr.  J.J.  Tinder,  Parsons. 

P.  J.  Strack,  Junction  City.  V,H,  Grinstead,  Leoti. 

Hon.  E.  E.  Murphy,  I^eaven worth.  Hon.  James  Fike,  Colby, 

Joseph  B.  Thoburn,  Peabody.  E.  S.  Bertram,  Council  Grove. 

H.  S.  Martin,  Marion.  P.  G.  Chubbic,  Beloit. 


MINNESOTA. 


W.  H.  Dawson,  Slayton. 
Alfred  Terry,  Slayton. 
Hon.  B.  D.  Smith,  Mankato. 
Harry  Franklin,  St.  Paul. 
Hon.  W.  A.  Funk,  Lakefield. 
E.  A.  Ranson,  Crookston. 


W.  J.  McAllister,  Slayton. 

Dr.  Thomas  Lowe,  Slayton. 

Dr.  C.  A.  McCollom,  Minneapolis. 

Charles  G.  Laybourn,  Minneapolis. 

Dr.  H.  O.  Larrabee,  Winona. 


326 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


WISCONSIN. 

Thomas  H.  Love,  Madison.  M.  H.  Thayer,  Sparta. 

Dr.  A.  H.  Hollister,  Madison.  Dr.  Isaac  Buckeridge,  Beloit. 
C.  E.  Whelan,  Madison.  P.  F.  Livermore,  Beloit. 

Humphrey  Pierce,  Appleton. 

MICHIGAN. 


C.  D.  Sharrow,  Grand  Rapids. 

J.  A.  McDowell,  West  Bay  City. 

M.  R.  Carrier,  Lansing. 

H.  C.  Hedges,  Lansing. 

J.  Tyler  Alcott,  Grand  Rapids. 

J.  A.  Lombard,  Grand  Rapids. 

C.  J.  Byrns,  Ishpeming. 


J.  W.  Burns,  Port  Huron. 

Rev.  J.  Kilpatrick,  West  Bay  City. 

W.  C.  Hicks,  Benton  Harbor. 

Rev.  R.  J.  Jones,  Gaines. 

Dr.  G.  F.  Knowles,  Manistee. 

S.  H.  Clink,  Muskegon. 

Charles  F.  Howe,  Coldwater. 


NORTH  DAKOTA. 
Charles  L.  Ward,  Ellendale. 

SOUTH  DAKOTA. 

P.  R.  Van  Slyke,  Madison.  Judge  John  Pusey,  Miller. 

Frank  R.  Hyde,  Sioux  Falls. 


2/ist  of  Twenty  Cities  Having  I^argest 
Membership,  October  ist,  1894. 


TOWN. 

STATE. 

NO.  OF 

MEMBER- 

CAMPS. 

SHIP. 

Springfield  

Illinois   .  ... 

6 

1180 

Nebraska  .... 

3 

1136 

Illinois  

3 

886 

Illinois  

7 

784 

Nebraska  .... 

5 

722 

Minnesota.  .  .  . 

12 

670 

Rock  Island  

Illinois  .... 

3 

647 

St.  Paul  

Minnesota .... 

7 

640 

Illinois  

2 

597 

Illinois  

1 

581 

Illinois  

3 

573 

Iowa.  ..... 

2 

524 

Iowa  

2 

391 

Illinois  

1 

380 

Beloit  

Wisconsin.  .  .  . 

2 

367 

Iowa  

1 

344 

Aurora  

Illinois  ..... 

1 

342 

Iowa  

3 

301 

Kansas  

1 

295 

Topeka  

Kansas  

1 

295 

The  Woodman's  Hand-Book,  327 


I,ist  of  Fifty  I^argest  Camps. 

October  ist,  1894. 


CAMP 
NO. 

NAME. 

LOCATION. 

STATE. 

NO.  OF 
MEM. 

51 

Rockford  .... 

Illinois  

617 

60 

Silver  Leaf  .  .  . 

Illinois  

581 

120 

Nebraska  .... 

532 

1454 

Nebraska  .... 

362 

106 

Muscatine  .... 

Muscatine  .... 

Iowa  

344 

54 

Aurora  

Illinois  

342 

38 

Moline  

Illinois  

332 

1626 

Easterly  .... 

Illinois  

322 

348 

Beloit  ...... 

Wisconsin  .... 

315 

356 

Kansas  

295 

536 

Topeka   

Kansas  .... 

295 

365 

Banyan   

Wisconsin  .... 

279 

872 

Central  Illinois  . 

Springfield  .... 

Illinois  

278 

984 

Dubuque  .... 

Dubuque  ... 

Iowa  

276 

144 

Decatur  

Illinois  ..... 

275 

31 

Robin  Hood  .  .  . 

Iowa  

265 

454 

Springfield  .... 

Illinois  

260 

249 

Paris  

Illinois  

256 

112 

Mound  City  .  .  . 

Illinois  

253 

667 

Galesburg  .... 

Galesburg  .... 

Illinois  

248 

83 

Iron  Wood    ,  .  . 

Iowa  

247 

87 

Charter  Oak   .  . 

Illinois  

239 

843 

Illinois  

239 

945 

Nebraska  .... 

237 

27 

Davenport  .... 

Iowa  

237 

566 

Hawthorne  .  .  . 

Nebraska  .... 

236 

47 

Sycamore  .... 

Illinois  

231 

29 

Rock  Island  .  .  . 

Rock  Island   .  .  . 

Illinois  

230 

254 

Vermillion    .  .  . 

Illinois  

226 

309 

Island  City   .  .  . 

Rock  Island    .  .  . 

Illinois  

220 

171 

Council  Bluffs  .  . 

Iowa  

217 

352 

Litchfield  .... 

Litchfield  .... 

Illinois  

215 

630 

Flour  City  .... 

Minneapolis   .  .  . 

Minnesota  .... 

209 

219 

Gem  City  .... 

Illinois  

207 

975 

UaR  Jjeai  .... 

Hiawatha  .... 

Kansas  

one 
ZVO 

1490 

Bay  City      .  .  , 

Michigan  .... 

204 

1  no 
108 

U.  0.  Grant  .  .  . 

Des  Moines    .  .  . 

Iowa  ...... 

202 

2002 

Kansas  City  .  .  . 

Kansas  City   .  .  . 

Missouri  .... 

200 

12 

Sterling" 

Stpylinc 

Tl  1 1  nni  Q 

XXlXXaWJLO  ..... 

198 

1550 

C.  W.  Hawes  .  . 

Rock  Island   .  .  . 

Illinois  

197 

384 

Oakdale  ... 

Salina  

Kansas  

196 

110 

Blooming- Grove  . 

Bloomington  .  ,  . 

Illinois  

195 

201 

Jack  Oak  .... 

Macomb  

Illinois  

194 

674 

Minnehaha  .  .  . 

St.  Paul  

Minnesota  .... 

189 

452 

Greenville  .... 

Illinois  

182 

52 

Belvidere  .... 

Illinois  

182 

690 

Ac  k  ley   

Iowa  

180 

969 

Lincoln  

Nebraska  .... 

179 

443 

Appleton  .... 

Wisconsin  .... 

177 

174 

Lake  

Waukegan  .... 

Illinois  ..... 

177 

328 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


The  Banner  Camp, 


About  one  year  ago  the  following  offer  was  made  by  the 
Head  Camp  : 

A  handsome  banner  will  be  presented  to  the  Camp 
having  the  largest  membership  in  good  standing  at  the 
close  of  the  day's  work,  December  31st,  1893,  as  shown 
by  the  records  at  the  Head  Clerk's  office.  The  banner 
will  be  held  by  the  successful  Camp  for  the  ensuing  year, 
and  will  be  known  as  the  '  Banner  Camp.'  At  the  end  of 
the  year  it  will  be  given  to  the  Camp  having  the  largest 
membership  in  good  standing." 

After  this  prize  was  offered  competition  became  very 
brisk,  the  leading  workers  being  Camps  No.  120,  Omaha, 
Nebraska  ;  No.  60,  Elgin,  Illinois,  and  No.  51,  Eockford, 
Illinois.  Toward  the  close  of  the  year  it  became  apparent 
that  either  Elgin  or  Omaha  Camp  would  be  the  winner, 
and  until  the  reports  were  received,  no  one  could  tell 
which  would  be  the  successful  one. 

At  the  close  of  the  year  1893  Camp  No.  120  was  the 
largest  in  the  jurisdiction,  and  had  six  hundred  and  seven 
members  in  good  standing,  and  won  the  right  to  carry  the 
magnificent  banner,  and  be  known  as  the  ^'  Banner  Camp  " 
for  the  year  1894.  The  presentation  of  this  banner  to 
the  Camp  by  Head  Consul  Northcott  took  place  in  the 
presence  of  thousands  of  people  at  the  great  Omaha 
picnic,  August,  1894.  The  response  was  made  by  C.  H. 
T.  Riepen,  Venerable  Consul  of  the  Camp. 

Camp  No.  51,  Rockford,  Illinois,  won  the  prize  for  the 
greatest  growth  during  the  months  of  December,  1893, 
and  January  and  February,  1894.  This  magnificent 
Camp  is  now  the  largest  in  the  jurisdiction,  as  shown  by 
the  pass  reports  on  the  first  day  of  September,  1894. 
Closely  following  this  Camp  in  membership  is  the  grand 
old  Silver  Leaf  Camp,  No.  60,  of  Elgin,  Illinois.    One  of 


Officers  of  Camp  Xo.  51.  IIockford.  Illinois,  1894. 

1.  F.  L.  Morgan,  Escort.  6.   Dr.  J.  E.  All.\bex,  Physician. 

2.  L.  :^L  Hess,  Manager.  7.   A.  W.  B.a.nks,  Manager. 

o.   J.  F.  \Vkix(,artnkr.  Watchman.  8.    Ed^vark  P.  Thomas,  Clerk. 

4.  Frank  E.  HuMESTON.  Venerable  Consul.      9.    ' ir-r.^F  Petersox.  Gentry. 

5.  T.  F.  Hopkins,  Banker.  10.   T.  W.  Clark,  Adviser. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


329 


these  two  Camps  will  probably  be  the  banner  Camp  for 
1895,  but  at  this  writing  it  is  impossible  to  say  which  one 
of  the  two  will  be  the  winner. 

Camp  No.  2002,  of  Kansas  City,  Missouri,  won  the  prize 
for  the  largest  growth  during  the  three  months  of  March, 
April,  and  May,  1894.  This  Camp  was  only  organized  in 
June,  1893,  and  now  has  a  membership  in  good  standing 
of  over  two  hundred. 

We  publish  a  photograph  of  the  handsome  banner  and 
of  the  officers  of  the  Camps  named  above,  and  do  but 
give  merit  where  merit  is  due  in  placing  them  on  the  roll 
of  honor. 


Winners  of  Hustler  Buttons. 


Every  neighbor  who  wears  one  of  these  buttons  attracts 
attention  wherever  he  meets  a  Woodman.  Every  w^earer 
has  brought  at  least  five  new  members  into  his  Camp. 
The  "  Hustler  Button  "  was  offered  for  the  month  of  April, 
1893,  and  also  for  the  period  extending  from  November 
1st,  1893,  to  May  1st,  1894.  We  publish  below  a  list  of 
the  names  of  every  Woodman  in  the  jurisdiction  who  is 
the  proud  possessor  and  entitled  to  wear  one  of  these 
buttons.  Not  a  neighbor  in  the  jurisdiction,  except  the 
four  hundred  and  eight  named  below%  are  entitled  to  wear 
this  button. 

At  least  two  thousand  members  have  been  brought  into 
the  order  by  the  winners  of  these  buttons  ;  besides,  some  of 
the  winners  have  brought  in  as  many  as  twenty-five  mem- 
bers. The  great  good  of  this  scheme  will  be  fully 
realized  when  we  consider  that  in  many  of  these  cases  the 
five  new  members  have  been  added  to  very  small  Camps, 
and  this  infusion  of  new  blood  has  been  the  stimulant 
that  has  started  many  a  Camp  on  a  new  era  of  growth 
and  prosperity. 


330 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


Camp.  No  vie.  7  own.  State. 

1484  P.  C.  Mowrey  Port  Huron  Michigan. 

1880  W.  H.  Williamson.  .  .  Easton  Illinois. 

1872  George  L.  Miller    .  .  .  Pierron   ,  Illinois. 

1626  C.  W.  Frew   Decatur  Illinois. 

89  B.  J.  Lawman  Manchester  Iowa. 

1762  W.  W.  Myers  Hopkinton   Iowa. 

281  John  L.  Berner  ....  Morris   Illinois. 

1146  J.  M.  Bushnell    ....  Wyocena  Wisconsin. 

106  J.  A.  Ledya  Muscatine  Iowa. 

1370  J.  H.  Langdon  Gretna  Nebraska. 

1370  J.  L.  Harley  Gretna  Nebraska. 

61  Ole  Ostby  Dundee  Illinois. 

1589  W.  E.  Gordon  Old  Ripley    .....  Illinois. 

100  S.  H.  Sheldon  Iowa  Falls  Iowa. 

1626  C.  E.  Lowry  Decatur  .......  Illinois. 

872  F.  X.  Reisch  Springfield  Illinois. 

1809  A.  Maes  Aniwa  Wisconsin. 

1809  W.  Purdy  Aniwa  Wisconsin. 

1809  E.  Bignall  Aniwa  Wisconsin. 

1809  H.  J.  Weeks  Aniwa  Wisconsin. 

1385  T.  J.  Reynolds    ....  Modesto  Illinois. 

613  Paul  Schmidt  St.  Paul  Nebraska. 

1112  John  T.  Lenton  ....  Pender  Nebraska. 

2106  N.  H.  Burton  Sullivan  Missouri. 

1260  E.  P.  Illsley  Sleepy  Eye  Minnesota. 

636  J.  J.  Taylor  Loup  City  Nebraska. 

2088  C.  E.  Borofe  Gallatin  Missouri. 

1551  J.  S  Pendley   Danville   Illinois. 

949  C.  W.  Hardy    .      ...  Waterville  Kansas. 

613  G.  F.  Holm  St.  Paul  Nebraska. 

1458  E.  W.  Barcroft    ....  Walshville  Illinois. 

466  William  E.  Sharp  .  .  .  Aurora  Illinois. 

955  James  Caverly    ....  Midland   Michigan. 

339  E.  C.  Vanderpoorten    .  Watseka  Illinois. 

598  E.  D.  Bartholomew   .  .  Necedah  Wisconsin. 

1052  E.  S.  Rakliff  Cunningham    ....  Kansas. 

156  B.  B.  Davis  Strawberry  Point   .  .  Iowa. 

156  T.  R.  McDonald  ....  Strawberry  Point   .  .  Iowa. 

1504  H.  C.  Peterson    ....  St.  Paul  Minnesota. 

2052  Henry  Struck  Maryville  Missouri. 

572  H.  A.  Fischer  Staunton  Illinois. 

•  945  Fred.  A.  Maxfield  .  .  .  Omaha  Nebraska. 

786  H.  C.  Pickett  Altamont  Illinois. 

106  J.  A.  Leyda  Muscatine  ......  Iowa. 

1837  C.  J.  Schaefer  ...       Eddyville  Iowa. 

402  Charles  H.  Cramer    .  .  Lake  Mills  Wisconsin. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh, 


331 


Camp.         Name.  Town.  State. 

2106  John  S.  Blanton  ....  Sullivan   Missouri. 

2002  D.  I.  Thornton    ....  Kansas  City  Missouri. 

2002  C.  S. -Fisher   Kansas  City  Missouri. 

2002  P.  C.  Palmer      ....  Kansas  City  Missouri. 

430  William  L.  Lovell  .  .  .  Crete  Nebraska. 

630  James  Paul      .  .  .  .  .  Minneapolis  Minnesota. 

254  Georg-e  W.  Reilly  ,  .  .  Danville   Illinois. 

1100  William  E.  Cutts    ...  Broomfield    .....  Nebraska. 

1100  Ira  N.  Kirby  Broomfield  Nebraska. 

i052  H.  A.  Scott  Cunningham    ....  Kansas. 

253  R.  F.  Hubbart  Parmer  City  .  .  .  .  .Illinois. 

1210  R.  Homberger     ....  Sauk  City  Wisconsin. 

760  William  Achenbach  .  .  Alma  Wisconsin. 

760  Ph.  Zeller  Alma  Wisconsin. 

2106  J.  R.  Bullock  Sullivan   Missouri. 

660  Charles  Cox  Table  Grove  Illinois. 

909  J.  G.  Johnson  .....  Peabody  Kansas. 

149  Charles  J.  Forth  ....  Palmyra  Illinois. 

1355  William  Brownfield  .  .  Bee  .  .  .  ,  Nebraska. 

1355  P.  C.  Gumbell  Bee  Nebraska. 

1504  C.  J.  Sund  St.  Paul  Minnesota. 

1253  G.  M.  Traut  Ivanhoe  Illinois. 

1253  E.  G.  Payne  Ivanhoe  .......  Illinois. 

1599  J.  W.  Kaiser  Port  Scott  Kansas. 

633  Georg-e  T.  Harlan  .  .  .  Girard   Illinois. 

633  C.  P.  Van  Sickle    .  .  .  Girard   Illinois. 

1804  A.  J.  Scranton    ....  Millersburg-  Illinois. 

1364  J.  P.  Routh  Hiattville  Kansas. 

60  C.  S.  Higinbotham    .  .  Elgin  Illinois. 

1599  M.  H.  Fuqua  Port  Scott  ......  Kansas. 

726  Thomas  E.  Hitt  ....  Carleton   Nebraska. 

1679  Peter  Johnson     ....  Hays  City  Kansas. 

456  James  T.  Ohlwine  .  .  .  Huron   .  South  Dakota. 

1439  John  J.  Burns  Gaines   Michigan. 

1188  R.  B.  Stoddard    ....  Geneva  Iowa. 

1188  S.  C.  Parks  Geneva  Iowa. 

1800  O.  L.  Shadford    ....  Agency  Iowa. 

1983  J.  D.  English  Axtell  Nebraska. 

1142  Julius  Rohwer  Ida  Grove  Iowa. 

2002  D.  M.  Hughes  Kansas  City  Missouri. 

2002  J.  R.  Hughes  Kansas  City  Missouri. 

282  R.  C.  Stirton  Monticello   Iowa. 

1589  T.  B.  McElroy  .      ...  Old  Ripley    .  .  .  .  „  Illinois. 

1589  W.  C.  Tyler  Old  Ripley  Illinois. 

1589  J.  W.  Brown  Old  Ripley  Illinois. 

1589  E.  R.  Gum   Old  Ripley  Illinois. 


332 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


Camp.         Name.  Town.  State. 

1589  J.  B.  Lon^  Old  Ripley    .....  Illinois. 

199  R.  P.  Wait   .    •  .  .  .    •  Reynolds  Illinois. 

339  J.  E.  Zamwalt  Watseka  Illinois. 

1960  James  P.  Anderson  ,  .  Wells  ,  .  Minnesota. 

1960  J.  H.  Joice  Wells  Minnesota. 

1960  George  H.  Donbarz  .  ,  Wells  Minnesota. 

384  J.  A.  Banker  Salina   Kansas. 

2066  A.  D.  Crotts  Pretty  Prairie  ....  Kansas. 

186  John  A.  Wilson  ....  Rural  Illinois. 

1728  Walter  Dunn  Viola  Minnesota 

51  L.  M.  Hess   Rockford  Illinois. 

51  W.  H.  Mcintosh  ....  Rockford  Illinois. 

51  C.  T.  Ray  Rockford  Illinois. 

51  F.  L.  Morgan  .....  Rockford  lUinois. 

760  Charles  Neumeister  .  .  Alma   Wisconsin. 

367  George  Howard  ....  Leavenworth    ....  Kansas. 

942  David  Heckman  ....  Liberty  Kansas. 

942  F.  M.  Lewis  Liberty   .  Kansas. 

942  G.  W.  Kerr  Liberty   Kansas. 

J  666  L.  P.  Johnson  Hoisington  Kansas. 

2124  M.  D.  Gibbs  •  Steelville  Missouri. 

1983  S.  A.  Olson  Axtell   Nebraska. 

1983  H.  A.  Carlson  Axtell   Nebraska. 

1983  W.  J.  Swartz  Axtell   Nebraska. 

1791  J.  F.  Quinley  Papillion  Nebraska. 

1983  J.  S.  Freeland  Axtell   Nebraska. 

599  J.  E.  Shears  Central  City  Nebraska. 

1748  F.  A.  Bardeen  Otsego  Michigan. 

219  C.  E.  Soule  Quincy  Illinois. 

219  John  L.  McLean  ....  Quincy  Illinois. 

420  Amos  Conrad  Vandalia  Illinois. 

420  A.  Marquis  Vandalia  Illinois. 

420  A.  C.  Walter  Vandalia  Illinois. 

1942  W.  C.  Sherrill  Excelsior  Springs  .  .  Missouri. 

1941  Dr.  C.  W.  Pyle    ....  Rich  Hill  Missouri. 

1941  C.  W.  Orris  Rich  Hill  Missouri. 

1446  E.  A.  Stockslager  .  .  .  Humphrey  Nebraska. 

163  Herbert  Vandresser  .  .  Genoa  Illinois. 

83  Edward  Werner  ....  Dubuque  Iowa. 

1301  J.  W.  Wise  Winchester  Kansas. 

1301  W.  F.  Weatherford  .  .  Winchester  Kansas. 

1301  J.  R.  O.  Carley    ....  Winchester  Kansas. 

466  C.  S.  Hull   Aurora  Nebraska. 

456  Alexander  Mcintosh    .  Huron  South  Dakota. 

1509  J.  B.  Reed   Jewell  City  Kansas. 

1509  George  E.  Jennings  .  .  Jewell  City  Kansas. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book.  333 


Camp.  Name. 

I'own. 

State. 

1477 

Winfield  Baldwin  . 

276 

George  D.  Hurlbut 

2002 

F.  P.  McKeigan  .  . 

2002 

J.  H.  Forris  .... 

2002 

Edward  Rodman  .  . 

.  ,  Kansas  City  ,  .  . 

1616 

Charles  A.  Mueller 

1845 

Frank  C.  Cusick  .  . 

1658 

909 

H.  B.  Van  Nest  .  . 

613 

George  D.  Jeffers  . 

.  St.  Paul  

111 

J.  A.  Mize  .... 

.  Des  Moines    .  .  . 

.  .  Iowa. 

1323 

Dr.  R.  K  Hull    .  . 

1918 

H.  A.  Phillips  .  .  . 

Grand  Meadow  . 

.  .  Minnesota. 

1761 

J.  H.  Shipley  .  .  . 

367 

J.  H.  E.  Weigant  . 

.  Leavenworth    .  . 

.  .  Kansas. 

1765 

Patrick  Boyles    .  . 

282 

J.  F.  Petcina    .  .  .  . 

208 

C.  E.  Shugart  .  .  .  . 

1203 

J.  B.  Fields  .... 

1558 

T.  M.  Barlow  .  .  .  . 

.  Walshville    .  .  . 

309 

1138 

W.  C.  McHenry  .  .  . 

1138 

E.  T.  Worden  .  .  .  . 

1960 

N.  C.  Nelson  

.  Wells  

65 

H.  C.  Blanchard  .  .  . 

.  Mendota  

.  .  Illinois. 

776 

W.  T.  Gates  

.  ShuUsburg    .  .  . 

.  .  Wisconsin. 

776 

452 

S.  G.  Sparks    .  .  .  . 

1029 

G.  W.  Martens   .  .  . 

1636 

.  Edna  

1636 

J.  W.  Ward  

1446 

1 

A.  J.  Angell  

1216 

A.  D.  Loffler    .  .  .  . 

1454 

J.  F.  Lyons  

1454 

Joseph  Daubaum    .  . 

2076 

Dr.  T.  S.  Manning  .  . 

1253 

Elisha  Proctor    .  .  . 

1253 

Jesse  Porteous    .  .  . 

1253 

William  Kuehlker  .  . 

723 

.  Mt.  Horeb  .... 

1558 

E.  P.  Moss  

.  Walshville    .  .  . 

354 

W.  H.  Gleim      .  .  . 

.  Brush  Creek  .  .  . 

2038 

H.  W.  Sunderlin    .  . 

.  Odell  

992 

E.  C.  Phillips  .  .  .  . 

.  Table  Rock  .  .  . 

1864 

334 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book, 


Camp.  Name. 

Town. 

JOD4 

J .  Jj.  Markei  

Tlirx  -M^-l  ^4-4- 

iyby 

W.  Li.  Emerson  .  .  . 

TTT _ 1 1 _ 

blo 

T7^  A      TT              , .  ,n  _ 

1  ceo 

TTI       T~>      "TITT  ^  ^  ^  ^  -4-  -4- 

1  UKQ. 

J  boo 

James  Bradford  .  .  . 

C?4-  T^^^,^"U 

r  reu.  ocniiiing^    .  .  . 

•79Q 

T  ^f/^Vl■f^^ilr^ 

August  Lindquist  .  . 

A  1 

Jo/7 

Noel  Brazelton   .  .  . 

191ft 

95y 

James  i±.  Wiiiara  .  . 

OCT 

William  Bushnell  .  . 

Zoi 

James  W.  Sherrill  .  . 

1  OOA 

1  OOrt 

looU 

T>1„„  TJ^Il 

ftQR 

OOO 

ijreorge  vv .  vv  on  ,  .  . 

1  c:C/l 

i0O4: 

1  1  oo 

C.  J.  Byrns  

obo 

William  F.  W^eisbard 

lol4 

1553 

George  S.  Stebbins  . 

1  AGO 

xLiCi.  M.  Jtvopplm  .  .  . 

o7 

4yi 

Cnaries  J^  .  Aibrignt  . 

1446 

702 

Martin  Hassett   .  .  . 

2020 

R.  A.  Thornell    ,  .  . 

ool 

Louis  Weidenbeck  .  . 

65 

John  D.  Ozment  .  .  , 

T 1 1 1  n  i^i  a 

f\An 
9425 

1  TO/I 

]7z4 

Ibzo 

Charles  J.  Safarik  .  . 

XT'     T  Oi-.r.^+V. 

191R 

688 

John  R.  Maxon  .  .  . 

TVTi  n  rl  f>n 

"Ps^pbr•a,^ka, 

688 

J.  H.  Tarkington  ,  . 

.  .  .  Nebraska. 

459 

.  .  .  Illinois. 

1301 

Reuben  McClure    .  . 

1553 

2096 

886 

Charles  Elliott  .  .  . 

1921 

Charles  Hancock   .  . 

.  .  .  Nebraska. 

The  Woodman's  Hand-Book.  335 


Camp.  Name. 

Town. 

State. 

1921 

A.  W.  Lambert  .  . 

448 

352 

J.  H.  Rodecker  .  . 

2162 

.  .  .  Illinois. 

110 

C.  C.  Hopkins  .  .  . 

Bloomington 

.  .  .  Illinois. 

1054 

C.  A.  Coats      .  .  .  - 

1950 

.  .  .  South  Dakota 

1178 

Hartland    .  .  . 

.  .  .  Wisconsin. 

1468 

316 

J.  T.  Hall  

2002 

H.  C.  Elberg    .  .  . 

95 

135 

J.  T.  McClure  .  .  . 

.  .  Alton  

.  .  .  Illinois. 

1255 

J.  W.  Davis  .... 

.  .  Herring-ton   .  . 

.  .  Kansas. 

1814 

Ed.  Zilke  .... 

.  .  Oakfield  .... 

1014 

Henry  B.  Nash   .  . 

1800 

H.  E.  Woodford  .  . 

.  .  Agency  City  .  . 

1712 

Arthur  J.  Hays  .  . 

1712 

2205 

John  S.  Shearer  .  . 

226 

.  .  Tipton  

2013 

A.  C.  Olson  .... 

1503 

N.  B.  Carver   .  .  . 

1062 

713 

J.  B.  Johansen    .  . 

1954 

Don  W.  Fraker  .  . 

283 

A.  M.  Edwards  .  . 

1138 

W.  C.  McHenry  .  . 

669 

A.  S.  Overman    .  . 

630 

J.  E.  Wolf  

630 

C.  H.  Patterson  .  . 

83 

Phil  Pier,  Jr.  .  .  . 

1666 

Jacob  W.  Shirley  . 

865 

1054 

D.  C.  Stansberry  . 

.  .  Stockham  .  .  . 

404 

W.  H.  Weeks  .  .  . 

404 

404 

402 

Richard  Krull    .  . 

.  .  Lake  Mills 

1943 

J.  M.  Rush  .... 

1943 

.  .  .  Nebraska. 

1943 

.  .  Battle  Cretk  .  . 

1022 

J.  T.  Fulton  .... 

437 

Harry  F.  Faith   .  . 

.  .  Fillmore    .  .  . 

532 

.  .  Pittsfield   .  .  . 

532 

S.  N.  Jones  .... 

.  .  Pittsfield   .  .  . 

336 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


Camp.         Name.  Town.  State. 

532  M.  R.  Peckenbaugh  .  .  Pittsfield  Illinois. 

47  M.  F.  Carlson  Sycamore  Illinois, 

47  Frank  Mitchell   ....  Sycamore  Illinois. 

1825  Peter  Schaub  Marion  Wisconsin. 

1512  A.  R.  Gillespie    ,  .  .     Buckingham    ....  Illinois. 

1117  Thomas  J.  Kilpatrick  .  Belmont   Wisconsin. 

1699  C.  B.  Stewart  Plainville  Kansas. 

2205  R.  G.  Holaday  Minneola  Kansas. 

2205  C.  F.  Wagner  Minneola  Kansas. 

2205  George  B  Doolittle   .  .  Minneola  Kansas. 

76  V.  G.  Chaffee  Coleta   Illinois 

633  Frank  Brown  Sharon  Wisconsin. 

633  Charles  Chadsey  ....  Sharon  Wisconsin. 

27  William  Fayr     ....  Davenport   Iowa. 

27  James  A.  Larkin    .  .  .  Davenport  .......  Iowa. 

1939  H.  B.  Harwood   ....  East  Dubuque  ....  Illinois. 

1625  O.  O.  McDown  Colony   Kansas. 

1585  James  McGinness  .  ,  .  Devon   Kansas. 

1025  John  Emerson     ....  St.  Clair  Michigan. 

178  George  B.  Roberts    .  .  Greenview  Illinois. 

359  F.  J.  Murphy  Abilene   Kansas 

2236  Thomas  C.  Hogan  .  .  .  Monroe  City  Missouri. 

636  Joseph  McCoy  Loup  City  Nebraska. 

1923  John  Florin  Waumandee  Wisconsin. 

1326  A.  A.  Driggers   ....  Madelia  Minnesota. 

141  George  L.  Buxton  .  .  .  Kirkland  Illinois. 

1087  J.  H.  Sipe  Danvers  Illinois. 

316  R.  D.  Phillips  Kearney  Nebraska. 

316  T.  A.  Tollefsen  ....  Kearney  Nebraska. 

316  D.  F.  Smith  Kearney  Nebraska. 

2089  D.  C.  Anthony    ....  Stockton  Kansas. 

2089  C.  A.  Flint  Stockton   Kansas. 

849  George  Mueller  ....  Hartford  Wisconsin. 

1253  H.  C.  Payne  Ivanhoe  Illinois. 

2217  J.  R.  Padfield  Atwater  Illinois. 

1278  Casper  A.  Krupp    .  .  .  Thorp     .   Wisconsin. 

1412  J.  E.  Kays  Kansas  City  Kansas. 

1105  P.  H.  Lannon  Saunemin  .....  Illinois. 

1710  O.  P.  Biglin  O'Neill  Nebraska. 

374  L.  J.  Merrill  Clinton  Wisconsin. 

374  R.  W.  Cheever   ....  Clinton  Wisconsin. 

1364  Samuel  Cooper    •  •  •  ^  Hiattville  Kansas. 

1992  S.  L.  Baker  Atlanta   Nebraska. 

1992  L.  C.  Holmes  Atlanta  Nebraska. 

1362  A.  Deickmann  Belleville  Illinois. 

1362  Charles  F.  Krebs    .  .  .  Belleville  Illinois. 


Officers  of  Silver  Leaf  Camp,  No.  60,  Elgin,  Illinois,  1894. 

1.  Charles  A.  Ki:mball,  Banker.  5.  C.  S.  Higinbotham,  Manager. 

2.  Geokge  Robinson,  Clerk.  6.  R.  R.  Rowe,  Sentry. 

3.  Dr.  a.  L.  Mann,  Physician.  7.  Oliver  M.  Ober,  Venerable  Consul. 

4.  F.  C.  Merrefield,  Adviser.  8.  A.  A.  Hammers,  Escort. 

9.   F.  A.  Bull,  Watchman. 


The  Woodman's  Iland-Booh.  33 


Camp.  Name. 

Towii. 

0//-,+/, 

1983 

J.  F.  McGaughey  . 

2099 

John  Caranahan  .  . 

Missouri. 

]616 

1616 

T.  A.  Wilson 

1616 

Thomas  Schilling  . 

1616 

George  J.  Grim  .  . 

1616 

1521 

Ora  Godsey  .... 

607 

Willis  Rowcliffe  .  . 

1347 

W.  N.  Copling.    .  . 

633 

Dr.  A.  H.  Simons  . 

869 

W.  H.  McGraw  .  . 

.  .  Lake  Geneva    .  ,  . 

.  Wisconsin. 

19 

J.  A.  Hasler  .... 

950 

W.  D.  Cox  

1796 

John  G.  Weber  ,  . 

1714 

1913 

2055 

100_9 

John  W.  Smith  .  . 

1333 

2065 

2065 

F,  L.  Ludemann  .  . 

623 

1991 

B.  F.  Purdy  .... 

1991 

O.  B.  Spellman   .  . 

1991 

L.  R.  Adlington  .  . 

607 

845 

A.  G.  Alexander 

.  .  Council  Grove  .  .  . 

.  Kansas. 

2008 

T.  T.  Marcott  .  .  . 

.  .  Brady  island.    .  .  . 

.  Nebraska. 

902 

E.  A.  Makepeace  . 

2 

W.  A.  Startzman  . 

2153 

J.  R.  Habbegger 

.  .  Jamestown    .  .  .  . 

,  Illinois. 

1864 

D.  F.  Stumpf    .  .  . 

1216 

W.  E.  Bussler  .  .  . 

.  .  Beresford  

.  South  Dakota, 

1699 

R.  T.  Yeagy  .... 

197 

J.  K.  Medberg    .  . 

709 

Thomas  Hodges  .  . 

506 

Peter  F.  Clark  .  .  . 

1  caa 

Samuel  P.  Hager  . 

462 

Charles  J.  Davis  .  . 

633 

C.  W.  Moomaw   .  . 

1606 

George  P.  Nelson  . 

1095 

C.  W.  Knight 

.  Nebraska. 

691 

D.  Z.  Stower    .  .  . 

335 

.  Wisconsin. 

-  335 

Dr.  R.  W.  Hoyt  .  . 

.  .  New  Lisbon  .  .  .  . 

22 


338 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


Camp.  Name. 

State. 

1446 

John  Sherman  .... 

.  Humphrey    .  .  . 

.  .  .  Nebraska. 

518 

James  R.  Kincaid  .  . 

.  Pawnee  .  .  .  .  , 

.  .  .  Illinois. 

1536 

George  McClure  .  .  . 

.  DeWitt  

,  .  .  Nebraska. 

1536 

C.  H.  Buck  

.  DeWitt  .  .  .  .  , 

,  .  .  Nebraska. 

546 

W.  H.  Boug-hton    .  . 

.  Phillipsbursf 

.  .  .  Kansas. 

1983 

J.  R.  Husband  .... 

.  Axtell  

1983 

Emil  G.  Olson  .... 

.  Axtell  , 

760 

B.  Jost  

760 

F.  Arndt  

.  Alma  

.  .  .  Wisconsin. 

421 

C.  B.  Smith  .  . 

.  Marinette  .  .  .  , 

.  .  .  Wisconsin. 

421 

M.  H.  Maxwell    .  .  . 

.  Marinette  .  .  .  , 

.  .  .  Wisconsin. 

50 

J.  A.  Provoost  .... 

.  Pecatonica    .  .  , 

.  .  .  Illinois. 

1521 

G.  O.  Miller  

.  Franklin    .  .  .  , 

.  .  .  Nebraska. 

594 

Gideon  Tripp  .... 

.  Trippville  .  .  .  , 

.  .  .  Wisconsin. 

1944 

Artie  Heligass    .  .  . 

.  Lynxville  .  .  .  , 

.  .  .  Wisconsin 

622 

J.  A.  Pollard  .... 

.  Keokuk  .  .  .  .  , 

64 

John  Stonick  .... 

1852 

C.  O.  Mohler  .... 

1852 

J.  T.  Copeland  .... 

2065 

Julius  Kohlbohn  .  .  . 

571 

James  L.  Baldwin  .  . 

571 

William  H.  Smith,  Jr. 

1649 

2192 

J.  B.  Humphrey  .  .  . 

.  Afton  , 

2192 

William  Brinkman  . 

456 

612 

E.  B.  Pride  

1067 

1050 

Ray  M.  Campbell  .  . 

1303 

1454 

Charles  B.  Shufelt  .  . 

1467 

W.  P.  Ellis  

.  Redfield  

1423 

D.  W.  Porter  .... 

1423 

495 

495 

J.  R.  Stucker  .... 

908 

T.  P.  Boecker  .... 

2002 

J.  W.  David  .... 

Kansas  City  .  .  . 

Missouri. 

2002 

edka 


psirtmeinil 


"  Upon  the  eMciency  of  the  ^ledical 
Department,  more  than  to  any  other, 
depends  the  future  prosperity  of  our 
Order." 


The  Medical  Department. 


HE  position  of  the  Head  Physician  in  a 
fraternal  order  is  much  different  from 
the  position  of  medical  director  in  a 
company  making  insurance  only  the 
motive.  Fraternal  insurance  is  two-fold.  First,  the 
neighborly  feeling  to  be  fostered  and  cultivated  between 
the  members  ;  and  second,  the  purely  insurance  phase 
of  the  subject.  From  the  neighborly  view  of  the  matter 
the  active  solicitor  of  the  membership  is  the  lay  member 
who  suggests  to  his  friend  the  advantage  to  be  gained  by 
joining  the  order.  From  this  point  of  view  we  will  offer 
a  few  suggestions  that  must  not  be  overlooked.  First, 
only  solicit  men  whose  character  is  known,  whose  habits 
cannot  be  questioned,  and  the  fact  of  their  becoming  mem- 
bers will  add  honor  to  the  Camp  ;  that  they  will  advance 
the  Camp  in  a  social  way,  that  their  influence  w^ill  be  for 
all  things  good,  thus  becoming  a  factor  in  the  general 
make-up  of  the  community  in  which  the  Camp  is  located  ; 
and  this  duty  falls  more  especially  upon  the  committee 
appointed  to  investigate  the  standing  of  the  applicant. 
This  covers  the  moral  hazard  of  the  applicant.  The  oc- 
cupation, age,  and  social  position  in  the  community  in 
which  he  lives,  married  or  single,  covers  the  sanitary  haz- 
ard of  the  risk.  These  points  should  all  be  considered  b}^ 
the  committee  before  signing  the  report.  It  is  the  duty 
of  the  Clerk  to  see  to  it  that  the  questions  in  the  applica- 
tion over  the  warranty  are  all  answered  ;  that  if  the  ap- 
plicant is  not  successfully  vaccinated  he  signs  a  small- 
pox w^aiver,  and  that  no  blanks  are  left  not  filled,"  as  a 
large  percentage  of  applications  returned  to  Camps  for 


342 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


correction  are  for  omissions  caused  by  carelessness  in 
filling  in "  all  answers  to  questions.  Oftentimes  the 
parties  making  out  the  application  think  that  the  ques- 
tions are  somewhat  silly,"  and  do  not  answer,  or  if  they 
do  the  answer  is  a  "  bluflP."  This  is  not  in  accordance 
with  business,  as  all  the  questions  are  put  for  a  purpose, 
that  purpose  being  the  answer  to  the  final  question,  ''Is 
the  applicant  a  good  risk,  and  will  it  be  fair  to  all  the 
members  to  ask  them  to  stand  their  share  of  the  amount 
asked  for  in  the  certificate  to  be  issued  to  the  new  mem- 
ber?" When  he  becomes  a  neighbor  and  has  finished 
his  work  in  this  world,  the  contract  must  then  be  fulfilled. 
Then  the  question  must  come  up,  ^'  Was  he  qualified  ?  " 
This  should  have  been  answered  before,  hence  the  im- 
portance of  knowing  well  what  you  are  doing.  To  the 
membership,  then,  belongs  the  task  of  ansAvering  the 
questions  of  the  moral  and  sanitary  hazard. 

To  the  Camp  Physician  comes  the  personal  responsi- 
bility of  passing  upon  the  physical  condition  of  the  appli- 
cant, and  to  fully  form  a  reasonable  opinion  of  the  ex- 
pectancy of  the  applicant's  life  he  must  review  all  the  work 
gone  over  by  the  committee,  weighing  the  moral  and  san- 
itary hazard  with  the  famil}^  record  and  the  results  of  the 
physicah examination  he  has  made.  The  final  question 
is  answered,  and  he  affixes  his  name  to  the  certificate, 
stating  that  he  has  "  carefully  examined  the  applicant  in 
accordance  with  above  blank  form,  and  having  thoroughly 
considered  the  statements  made  by  him  in  this  applica- 
tion, I  hereby  certify  that  in  my  judgment  as  a  ph}^- 
sician  he  is  of  sound  bodily  health,  and  so  far  as  I  can 
ascertain  there  are  no  indications  of  disease,  either  from 
ancestry,  present  physical  condition,  or  personal  habits, 
which  should  debar  him  from  participating  in  the  finan- 
cial benefits  of  the  order."  To  do  this  the  Camp  Phy- 
sician must  forget  that  he  is  the  friend  of  the  applicant, 
and  not  appear  as  his  attorney  and  try  to  fix  him  up,  but 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


343 


give  the  order  ^'  the  benefit  of  the  doubt ; "  and  shouid  he 
find  that  he  cannot  pass  him,  do  not  tell  him  nor  allow 
him  to  .know  why.  The  report  will  come  back  in  the 
regular  way.  Oftentimes  the  Camp  Physician  is,  as  it 
were,  placed  between  two  fires.  Self-preservation  is  the 
first  law  of  nature.'  Protect  yourself  and  at  the  same 
time  the  order.  A  letter  written  to  the  Head  Physician 
stating  facts  will  take  the  case  out  of  your  hands.  One 
at  a  distance  cannot  be  hit  very  hard,  while  one  at  home 
might  be  blamed  to  his  hurt  in  a  financial  way.  The 
Camp  Physician  will  always  be  protected  in  the  perform- 
ance of  his  duty. 

Tuberculosis  causes  more  deaths  than  any  other  disease 
which  we  have  to  contend  with,  and  applicants  under 
thirty-five  (35)  years  showing  one  or  more  family 
taint  cannot  be  accepted.  The  fact  of  the  consumption 
being  contracted  will  not  be  considered.  Also,  a  party 
waiting  upon  and  nursing  a  case  of  tuberculosis  (should 
the  fact  be  known)  is  cause  for  rejection.  We  cannot  run 
the  risk.  We  now  have  numbers;  we  want  quality,  not 
quantit3\  The  party  who  has  been  rejected  is,  as  a  rule, 
posted,  and  will  put  the  most  expert  examiner  to  his 
pins,  and  should  any  of  his  answers  to  the  questions  pro- 
pounded lead  you  to  believe  he  is  hiding  behind  some 
"  don't  know,"  give  the  order  "  the  benefit  of  the  doubt." 

Incipient  kidney  disease  is  one  of  the  most  difficult 
subjects  the  medical  examiner  for  life  insurance  has  to 
deal  with,  and  special  care  is  required.  The  specific 
gravity  should  be  taken  while  the  urine  is  fresh,  and 
most  urinometers  are  tested  and  marked  with  urine  of 
the  temperature  of  the  body.  In  cases  where  there  is 
a  question,  this  should  be  taken  into  consideration.  The 
temperature  of  the  body  as  taken  with  clinical  thermo- 
meter, with  the  respiration  and  pulse  rate  should  corres- 
pond, and  when  carefully  taken  they  will.  The  weight 
and  height  of  the  body  should  be  taken  from  actual 


344 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


measurement  and  weight  upon  a  scale  known  to  be  ac- 
curate. Never  guess  at  the  height  and  weight,  nor  any 
other  fact  required  in  the  examination. 

Your  attention  is  also  called  to  the  following  table  of 
heights,  weights,  measures,  and  expectancy  of  life  accord- 
ing to  the  American  standing  : 


TABLE  OF  HEIGHT,  WEIGHT,  AND  CHEST  MEASUREMENTS. 


Height  in  Feet 
and  Inches. 

Chest  at  Nipples, 
Inches. 

standard  Weight, 
Pounds. 

Fifteen  Per  Cent 
Underweight, 
Pounds. 

Thirty  Per  Cent 
Overweight, 
Potmds. 

5  — 

83 

120 

102 

156 

5—  1 

34 

124 

105  . 

161 

5—  2 

35 

128 

109 

166 

5—  3 

36 

132 

112 

172 

5—  4 

36 

136 

116 

177 

5—  5 

37 

140 

119 

182 

5—  6 

37 

144 

122 

187 

0 —  7 

38 

150 

127 

195 

5-  8 

38 

156 

133 

203 

5—9 

39 

162 

138 

211 

5  —  10 

39 

168 

143 

218 

5  —  11 

40 

174 

148 

226 

6  — 

41 

180 

153 

234 

N.  B. — Fifteen  per  cent  underweight  or  thirty  per  cent  overweight 
will  not  be  considered  in  excess,  providing  there  are  no  other  unfavor- 
able conditions. 

TABLE  OF  EXPECTANCY. 


AGE. 

EXPECTANCY. 

AGE. 

EXPECTANCY. 

AGE. 

EXPECTANCY. 

Years. 

Years. 

1 

Years. 

Years. 

Years. 

Years. 

21 

41 

31 

34 

41 

27 

22 

40 

32 

33 

42 

26 

23 

40 

33 

33 

43 

26 

24 

39 

34 

32 

44 

25 

25 

38 

35 

31 

45 

24 

26 

38 

36 

31 

46 

23 

27 

37 

37 

30 

47 

23 

28 

36 

38 

29 

48 

22 

29 

36 

39 

28 

49 

21 

30 

35 

40 

28 

50 

20 

The  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  does  not  accept  nor 
solicit  any  person  who  habitually  uses  malt  or  alcoholic 
stimulants  to  excess,  nor  those  who  are  now  broken  down 


Officers  of  Kansas  City  Camp,  No.  2002,  Kansas  City,  Mo.,  1894. 


1.  GeorctE  Stevensox,  Bauker.  6. 

2.  D.  I.  Gessly,  Chairman  Managers.  7. 

3.  Dr.  p.  C.  Palmer,  Physician  8. 

4.  George  L.  Walls,  Venerable  Consul.  9. 

5.  John  Derry,  Manager.  10. 


George  L.  Wallace,  Escort. 
P.  M.  Rowland,  Adviser. 
J.  R.  Hughes,  Deputy. 

C.  A.  Adams.  Watchman. 

D.  M.  HlitHES,  Deputy. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


345 


from  the  effects  of  the  same,  even  though  they  have 
abandoned  the  habit.  A  probation  of  one  year  will  be 
required'  in  all  these  cases.  As  in  all  fraternal  orders, 
the  class  make  the  rule,  and  no  exception  can  be  taken. 
We  are  the  servants,  the  order  is  the  ruler. 

C.  A.  McCoLLOM,  Head  Physician. 


Report  of  Head  Physician, 


To  the  Officers  and  Members  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of 
America,  Greeting  : 

The  close  of  the  first  year  of  my  stewardship  in  this 
office  being  near  at  hand,  I  have  thought  it  advisable  to 
give  you  a  brief  report  of  the  work  done,  in  order  that 
you  may  have  some  idea  of  the  medical  department  of 
the  order,  and  of  the  business  transacted  by  it  thus  far. 

From  January  1st,  1891,  to  December  1st,  1891  (eleven 
months),  there  has  been  received  at  this  office  thirteen 
thousand  four  hundred  and  eleven  applications  ;  of  this 
number  four  hundred  and  twenty-eight  have  been  re- 
jected, and  one  thousand  four  hundred  and  nineteen 
returned  for  correction,  vaccination  waiver,  or  further  in- 
formation or  transfer. 

As  regards  the  applications  sent  in,  it  is  due  to  say  that 
they,  as  a  rule,  have  been  first-class,  and  the  rejections,  in 
a  majority  of  the  cases,  have  been  for  a  family  history  of 
consumption  or  poor  physical  condition. 

Of  the  returns  made  for  additional  information  or  for 
transfer,  a  large  majority  of  these  belong  to  the  latter 
class  ;  this  became  necessary  owing  to  the  adoption  of  the 
new  form  which  went  into  effect  May  1st,  and  was  neces- 
sitated for  the  reason  that  at  that  time  there  were  four 
different  blanks  for  application  in  use.  This  office 
thought  it  advisable  to  change  the  form  of  blanks,  that 


346 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


the  order  might  obtain  more  fall  and  definite  information 
regarding  the  applicant,  and  accordingly  suggested  this 
cliange  to  the  Board  of  Directors,  and  was  instructed  by 
them  to  prepare  such  blanks,  which  was  accordingly  done 
and  submitted  for  their  approval,  which,  I  am  pleased  to 
note,  they  did  without  hesitancy,  thus  giving  to  the  order 
what  we  consider  a  form  as  good  as  that  used  by  any 
old-line  "  or  fraternal  organization  dow  in  existence. 

A  great  many  complaints  have  reached  this  office  from 
Camp  physicians  relative  to  the  new  application  blank  — 
in  this,  that  the  compensation,  $1,  is  too  small  for  the 
amount  of  labor  performed  in  filling  out  the  new  form  of 
blanks.  You  will  notice,  by  referring  to  the  Local  Camp 
By-Laws,  Division  B,  Section  C,  page  32,  of  the  order, 
that  the  fee  for  adoption  is  one  that  is  regulated  by  the 
local  Camp.  This,  of  course,  is  subject  to  the  approval 
of  the  Head  Consul. 

I  would  recommend  that  the  Bj^-Laws  be  so  amended 
that  the  fee  for  adoption  be  increased  sufficiently  to  allow 
the  local  physician  $2  for  such  an  examination,  believing, 
as  I  do,  that  the  "  laborer  is  worthy  of  his  hire,"  and  that 
upon  tlie  efficiency  of  the  medical  department,  more  than 
any  other,  depends  the  future  prosperity  of  our  order. 
And  here  let  me  emphasize  :  That  none  other  than 
graduates  of  reputable  medical  colleges  be  elected  Camp 
Physicians." 

Li  conclusion,  I  wish  to  thank  the  officers  and  mem- 
bers of  the  order  for  the  valued  assistance  given  me.  I 
also  desire  to  compliment  the  examiners  of  subordinate 
Camps  for  the  care  and  discretion  they  have  shown  in 
the  examination  of  applicants. 

Trusting  that  I  have  merited  your  approval,  and  that 
the  future  may  show  that  in  the  administration  of  the 
affairs  of  this  department  I  have  sustained  the  high 
standard  of  the  order,  I  am, 

Yours  fraternally, 

Frank  Swallow. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


347 


A  Few  Words  to  Camp  Physicians, 


The  following  remarks  are  offered,  not  as  instructions, 
but  rather  as  practical  suggestions  to  our  local  Camp 
Physicians.  They  are  not  intended  to  prescribe  or  cover 
in  full  the  duties  of  Camp  Physicians,  but  to  point  out  as 
clearly  as  possible  the  manner  in  which  examinations 
may  be  most  readily  and  effectively  made.  They  should 
be,  and  are,  regarded  as  a  confidential  communication 
from  the  local  Camp  Physicians  to  the  Head  Physicians 
of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America,  and  in  return  the 
Head  Physicians  will  gladly  communicate  with  them  at 
any  time,  and  in  every  case,  when  in  their  opinion  it  is 
desirable  or  necessary  for  the  good  of  the  order. 

Life  insurance  is  protection.  It  protects  the  loved  ones 
dependent  upon  the  insured  from  the  financial  loss  oc- 
curring upon  his  untimely  death  ;  it  relieves  him  and  his 
friends  from  the  pecuniary  responsibilities  connected 
with  or  produced  by  the  great  uncertainty  of  human  life 
by  entirely  transferring  that  responsibility  to  the  Modern 
Woodmen  of  America  when  fraternally  associated  with 
them  as  a  neighbor.  The  business  of  all  life  insurance 
is  based  on  the  fact  that  while  the  longevity  of  a  single 
individual  is  very  uncertain,  yet  the  fact  is  established 
that  there  is  a  fixed  law  determining  very  closely  the 
average  age  at  death  of  large  numbers  of  individuals  of 
the  same  age,  and  in  compliance  with  this  law  it  may 
reasonably  be  expected  that  any  man  of  sound  health,  of 
temperate  habits,  having  a  healthful  occupation,  and  pos- 
sessing a  good  family  history,  will  live  as  long  as  the 
average  of  those  of  the  same  age,  or,  in  other  words,  will 
live  out  his  expectation  of  life.  Involving  as  it  does  the 
purely  medical  questions  of  the  past  and  present  health, 
the  family  history,  habits,  hygienic  surroundings,  and 
occupation  of  the  person,  the  business  requires  for  its 


348 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


successful  prosecution  and  financial  stability  the  assist- 
ance of  those  persons  whose  lives  are  devoted  to  the  study 
of  such  questions,  namely,  medical  practitioners  ;  and  in 
Anew  of  tlie  enormous  sums  of  mone}^  involved,  and  the 
dangers  of  misrepresentation  and  fraud,  it  is  necessary 
that  our  local  examiners  should  possess  a  good,  thorough 
medical  knowledge  and  sound  judgment.  The  main  suc- 
cess of  any  life  insurance  is  to  make  a  high  standard  in 
the  selection  of  risks,  and  maintain  it.  These  should 
always  be  fully  up  at  least  to  the  average  in  health,  good 
personal  and  family  history,  temperate  habits,  healthful 
occupation,  etc.,  and  they  should  approximate  closely  to 
the  average  physical  conformation  of  healthy  men.  The 
physicians  should  fully  inform  themselves  of  the  health, 
habits,  family  history,  physical  condition,  and  occupation 
of  the  applicant  for  insurance,  and  in  ever}^  instance 
where  doubt  exists  in  the  mind  of  the  medical  examiner 
the  order  should  be  givon  the  benefit  of  the  same,  thereb}^ 
guarding  well  the  interest  of  those  alread}^  insured,  and 
protecting  those  desirous  of  becoming  members  of  the 
fraternity.  Under  the  present  management  of  our  able 
and  efficient  Head  Consul,  W.  A.  Northcott,  and  the  con- 
fidence inspired  by  the  conscientious  and  honest  business 
ability  possessed  by  our  Honorable  Board  of  Directors, 
the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  have  added  three 
thousand  names  to  their  list  of  members  during  the 
month  of  January,  1893  —  unparalleled  by  any  other 
order  in  existence  to-day  doing  business  in  the  same  ter- 
ritory—  and  yet  there  is  room  for  many  more  to  avail 
themselves  of  the  opportunity  to  protect  their  dear  ones 
from  the  cold,  unwilling  charity  bestowed  by  a  selfish, 
busy  world  when  they  shall  be  called  hence.  By  putting 
away  a  few  dollars  each  year  we  can  secure  the  protection 
of  the  widow  and  orphans.  Their  treasure-box  will  be 
made  secure  for  them  in  time  of  need. 

I.  L.  Potter,  Head  Physician, 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


349 


Report  on  Medical  Examiners  to  Fraternal 
Congress, 


What  can  be  done  by  Medical  Examiners,  and  how  can 
it  be  done  best  ? 

The  three  points  which  we  must  investigate  to  enable 
us  to  judge  of  the  insurability  of  any  applicant  are  his 
family  history,  his  personal  history,  and  his  present 
condition. 

To  get  at  these  points  the  services  of  a  medical  man  are 
requisite;  and  to  do  it  so  as  to  make  it  valuable  requires 
the  aid  of  a  man  with  not  only  a  knowledge  of  medicine, 
but  with  a  knowledge  of  men  and  of  disease.  To  elicit 
from  the  applicant  an  account  of  his  family  history  so 
trustworthy  that  we  can  base  on  it  a  proper  estimate  of 
his  vital  expectancy,  must  usually  be  the  work  of  one 
well  versed  in  the  history  and  progress  of  disease,  and 
equally  well  skilled  in  judging  and  analyzing  the  testi- 
mony of  the  witnesses,  who  may  be  ignorant  or  dishonest, 
or  both.  The  causes  to  which  death  is  attributed  by  the 
popular  mind  are  often  wholly  erroneous  and  misleading, 
and  the  old  man  who  falls  a  victim  to  disease  of  the  pros- 
tate gland  is  often  said  to  have  died  of  gravel  or  kidney 
disease,  and  the  young  woman  who  loses  her  life  by 
phthisis  after  her  first  pregnancy  is  not  unfrequently 
said  to  have  succumbed  to  liver  disease  or  to  child-birth. 
Only  careful  questioning  by  one  who  knows  the  general 
history  and  ordinary  course  of  these  various  maladies  can 
discover  what  was  the  real  lesion,  what  the  full  signifi- 
cance of  said  lesion,  and  what  the  probabilities  of  its 
influence  on  the  health  of  the  next  generation. 

An  applicant  may  be  so  dishonest  and  untruthful  as  to 
deceive  any  one,  even  the  most  experienced,  but  this  is 
exceedingly  rare,  and  it  is  usually  easy  for  a  skilled 
physician,  by  careful  inquiries,  to  draw  out  the  whole 


350 


The  Woodma'nJs  Hand-Book. 


personal  or  family  history  of  an  applicant,  provided  the 
applicant  knows  it  himself;  but  the  more  common  diffi- 
culty lies  in  the  fact  that  an  applicant '  only  knows  the 
story  as  it  has  been  told  him  by  an  ignorant  aunt  or  an 
illiterate  nurse,  or  even  a  quackish  physician.  Only  a 
week  or  two  ago  a  young  man  told  me  in  all  good  faith 
that  his  mother's  appoplexy  was  owing  to  her  having  used 
a  lead  wash  for  her  hair  for  twenty  years;  that  there  was 
nothing  hereditary  in  it,  and  that  his  sister,  who  had  fallen 
a  victim  to  appoplexy  had  done  so  because  she  had  had 
several  abortions.  Another  applicant  had  been  told,  and 
fully  believed,  that  his  father  had  phthisis  because  he 
had  used  tobacco. 

In  all  these  cases  it  is  in  the  province  of  the  Medical 
Examiner,  and  it  is  in  this  that  his  first  usefulness  ap- 
pears, by  critical  judgment  and  searching  inquiry  to 
develop  the  real  meaning  and  bearing  of  the  various 
cases  of  death  that  have  occurred  in  the  family,  and  the 
various  attacks  of  illness  which  the  applicant  himself  has 
experienced. 

Those  applications  in  which  the  instituting  officer  who 
has  had  no  medical  education,  or  the  young  physician 
who  has  had  no  practical  knowledge  of  the  history,  or  the 
symptoms,  or  the  usual  course  of  the  disease,  are  very 
apt  to  involve  their  companies  in  unexpected  loss. 

For  these  reasons  we  say  that  the  services  of  the  Med- 
ical Examiner  in  obtaining  and  properly  stating  the  fam- 
ily and  personal  history  are  very  important  ;  the  per- 
sonal history  quite  as  much  as  the  family  history,  for 
precisely  the  same  kind  of  knowledge  and  experience  is 
necessary  in  giving  a  summary  of  the  applicant's  per- 
sonal history  as  is  required  to  give  his  family  history. 
Entirely  aside  from  any  attempt  of  the  applicant  to  con- 
ceal the  unfavorable  points  in  his  personal  history 
(though  the  Medical  Examiner  must  not  fail  to  be  on  his 
guard  against  such  deception),  one  cannot  without  much 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Booh. 


351 


tact  and  judgment  give  a  correct  statement  of  every  ap- 
plicant's own  history  from  the  applicant's  own  narrative. 
One  candidate  who  has  a  keen  sense  of  pain  or  bodily 
discomfort,  or  has  been  tenderly  reared  and  cosseted, 
remembers  with  a  shudder  what  he  suffered  at  one  time 
from  a  cold  in  the  head,  or  a  boil,  or  a  pain  in  his  knee, 
or  a  headache,  or  some  other  trifling  and  unimportant 
ailment,  and  tells  these  experiences  so  as  to  make  it 
appear  that  he  has  been  afflicted  with  such  a  succession 
of  diseases  that  the  examiner  might  think  him  to  have 
been  a  great  invalid,  if  he  does  not  know  how  to  read  the 
man  and  understand  his  exaggerations.  On  the  other 
hand,  there  are  many  whose  lives  have  been  so  busy  and 
eventful  that  they  have  but  little  remembrance  of  any 
illness  that  has  not  kept  them  from  their  duties  a  long, 
long  time,  and  they  therefore  consider  all  their  brief  ill- 
nesses to  have  been  of  no  consequence,  even  though  they 
may  have  been  very  severe  at  the  time.  And  in  this 
way  the  examiner  must  winnow  (out?)  from  the  abund- 
ance of  statements  of  disease  of  one  man  the  few  that 
have  any  importance,  and  with  another  he  must  make 
searching  and  repeated  inquiries  to  be  sure  that  he  has  not 
in  alluding  to  his  trifling  ailments  omitted  some  sickness 
that  may  be  of  the  utmost  importance  as  to  his  proba- 
bilities of  longevity. 

Hence,  as  I  have  said,  a  knowledge  of  the  ordinary 
course  and  history  of  disease,  as  well  as  a  knowledge  of 
men  and  the  proper  weight  to  be  attached  to  their  rep- 
resentations is  an  important  part  of  the  armament  that 
every  Medical  Examiner  should  possess,  especially  when 
investigating  the  family  and  personal  history  of  appli- 
cants. 

But  it  is  when  we  come  to  the  determination  of  an  ap- 
plicant's present  condition  that  the  work  of  the  Medical 
Examiner  assumes  its  paramount  importance.  Here, 
too,  the  general  knowledge  that  has  just  been  alluded  to 


352 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh, 


is  important,  and  would  go  far  to  enable  the  examiner  to 
solve  the  problem  before  him,  but  technical  knowledge 
and  scientific  learning  now  become  indispensable  ;  and 
he  will  always  be  the  best  Medical  Examiner  who,  in  ad- 
dition to  keen  powers  of  observation  and  mental  acumen, 
is  also  master  of  the  arts  of  physical  diagnosis.  In  this 
respect  probably  no  one  accomplishment  is  more  abso- 
lutely necessary  than  such  a  skillful  mastery  of  ausculta- 
tion and  percussion  as  will  enable  him  to  get  a  correct  idea 
of  the  state  of  the  lungs  and  the  heart.  Phthisis  among 
the  younger  applicants,  and  heart  disease  among  the 
elder,  are  great  consumers  of  life  insurance  funds  ;  and  I 
know  of  nothing  in  the  Medical  Examiner  that  can  sup- 
ply the  want  of  the  skilled  ear  and  touch  in  auscultation 
and  percussion.  The  care  that  is  now  taken  in  every 
first-class  medical  school  to  teach  these  accomplishments 
gives  us  the  right  to  expect  that  our  examiners  will  be 
experts  in  this  department,  and  be  fully  competent  to  de- 
tect even  the  earliest  traces  of  incipient  diseases  of  the 
heart  and  lungs.  He  is  one  of  the  worst  enemies  of  the 
society  who,  being  entrusted  with  this  duty,  thumps  the 
applicant's  chest  a  few  times,  listens  to  the  breathing  in 
a  cursory  and  perfunctory  way,  and  does  not  know 
enough  to  make  explorations  so  as  to  detect  disease  even 
if  it  be  present.  Such  examinations  do  no  credit  to  the 
examiner,  and  can  be  of  no  advantage  to  the  society 
whom  he  pretends  to  serve.  The  condition  of  the  lungs 
and  heart  can  be  learned  with  a  great  degree  of  certainty 
b}^  one  who  has  been  so  educated  that  he  can  test  them  in 
accordance  with  the  methods  of  the  best  observers,  and 
is  so  skilled  that  he  can  fully  interpret  the  significance  of 
the  minor  variations  from  the  normal  type  that  he  may 
detect ;  and  these  qualifications  we  must  insist  on. 

Such  an  amount  of  readiness  also  in  the  art  of  chem- 
istry and  the  use  of  the  microscope  as  is  necessary  to 
examine  the  urine  carefully  is  quite  as  essential  as  the 


\ 


Head  Officers  Royal  Neighbors,  1894. 

1.  Mrs.  W.  E.  Cady,  Sup.  Chancellor,  Omaha.  5.  Mrs.  Winnie  Fielder,  Supreme  Recorder,  Peoria. 

2.  Mrs.  E.  D.  Watt,  Sup.  Grand  Oracle,  Omaha.  6.  Mrs.  G.  M.  Shaver,  Sup.  Outer  Sentinel,  Omaha. 

3.  Mrs.  C.  H.  T.  Riepen,  Sup.  Mnrshal,  Omaha.  7.  Mrs.  B.  C.  Douglas,  Sup.  Inner  Sentinel,  Blue  Md. 

4.  Dr.  F.  a.  Grahaji,  Head  Pyhsician,  Lincoln.  8.  Mrs.  F.  L.  Horton,  Sup.  Vice  Oracle,  Clifton,  Kas. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


353 


art  of  auscultation  and  percussion;  and  it  does  not  wholly 
suffice  to  be  able  to  use  a  few  tests,  and  see  if  a  cloudy 
band  or  zone  is  formed,  or  a  precipitate  of  a  certain  color 
is  deposited.  He  must  also  have  knowledge  enough  at 
least  to  know  whether  the  cloudy  band  is  or  is  not  albu- 
men, and  whether  the  precipitate  is  or  is  not  character- 
istic of  the  presence  of  sugar.  In  nothing  is  a  little 
knowledge  more  dangerous  than  in  the  analysis  of  urine; 
and  not  a  few  men  are  rejected  in  life  insurance  because 
the  examiner  is  not  learned  enough  to  say  whether  the 
appearances  really  declare  the  presence  of  albumen  or 
sugar,  and  quite  as  many  others  are  recommended  in 
whose  urine  an  expert  would  have  found  palpable  indica- 
tions of  disease. 

Furthermore,  in  addition  to  all  this  knowledge  and 
skill,  we  must  also  employ  men  who  have  patience  and 
care  in  doing  the  work  thoroughly  and  lovingly.  No 
matter  how  much  a  man  may  know,  or  what  experience 
he  has  had,  if  he  is  not  willing  to  take  time  for  the 
thorough  and  patient  study  of  doubtful  cases,  he  is  sure 
to  disappoint  his  employer  sooner  or  later. 

Last,  and  most  important  of  all,  is  a  keen  sense  of 
honor  and  duty  in  a  physician,  that  will  make  him 
ashamed  of  doing  his  work  ineffectively,  determined  to 
let  no  blemish  escape  his  watchfulness,  and  so  rigidly 
truthful  as  to  be  incapable  of  affixing  his  name  to  any 
statement  that  is  not  wholly  true  and  exact.  Our  so- 
cieties may  be  in  danger  of  meeting  some  heav}^  losses 
from  dishonest  examiners,  and  one  cannot  but  feel  that 
there  is  a  vast  opportunity  for  such  rogues  to  operate, 
but  after  all  it  will  be  found  that  in  the  long  run  our 
average  losses  are  incurred  through  the  agency  of  ex- 
aminers who  are  not  dishonest  or  incompetent,  but  are 
simply  not  painstaking  enough. 

Let  the  Medical  Examiner  realize  that  the  chart  or  re- 
cord of  every  examination  which  he  forwards  to  the  head- 

23 


354 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


quarters  of  the  society  must  be  reliable,  or  that  he  will  be 
seen  to  have  forfeited  his  good  standing  as  a  man  and 
a  physician;  that  negligence  in  this  kind  of  work  not 
only  shows  him  to  be  unfaithful  to  the  interests  of  his 
employers,  but  destitute  of  the  true  spirit  of  scientific  re- 
search and  devoid  of  the  capacity  of  scholarly  perform- 
ance. Let  him  learn  to  feel  this  absolutely  and  earnestly, 
and  his  work  will  soon  become  more  valuable. 

To  be  a  first-class  examiner  one  must  have  a  large 
acquaintance  with  men  and  with  disease,  must  have  been 
well  taught  in  physical  explorations,  must  feel  an  honest 
pride  in  doing  his  best  work,  and  must  be  zealous  and 
indefatigable.  Experience,  education,  honesty  of  pur- 
pose, and  professional  pride  are  all  combined  in  those 
who  are  our  best  examiners. 

It  is  true  that  this  standard  is  a  high  one,  and  there 
are  comparatively  few  who  come  up  to  it  in  every  respect, 
but  it  is  only  by  holding  our  banner  aloft  proudly  that 
we  can  expect  our  men  to  do  us  the  most  credit.  But  to 
reach  such  a  standard  it  is  necessary  that  examiners 
must  be  selected  solely  on  account  of  their  qualifications 
as  examiners,  and  not  at  all  on  account  of  their  social 
qualities,  their  genial  habits,  or  their  being  able  to  exert 
a  large  influence  in  persuading  new  applicants  to  join 
the  order.  Indeed,  there  are  grave  doubts  to  be  felt  re- 
garding any  examinations  which  are  made  by  the  same 
men  who  have  induced  the  candidates  to  seek  member- 
ship—  it  is  too  much  like  the  same  lawyer  acting  as 
counsel  for  the  defense  and  judge  —  a  procedure  which 
though  it  might  benefit  the  client,  would  hardly  pro- 
mote the  administration  of  justice. 

Finally,  we  would  conclude  b}^  saying  that  the  Medical 
Examiners  should  be  appointed  and  not  elected  ;  that 
their  term  of  service  should  be  during  good  behavior  ; 
that  none  should  be  appointed  except  those  who  have 
beea  well  educated,  who  have  had  experience  as  medi- 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book.  355 


cal  practitioners,  who  do  not  require  the  fees  for  a  livli- 

hood,  who  are  manly  and  upright,  and  who  are  scholarly, 

accurate,  and  sedulously  careful. 

Eespectfully  submitted, 

Joel  Seaverns,  ^ 

R.  N.  Seaver.     >  Committee. 

Darius  Wilson,  ; 

Boston,  Mass.,  Nov.  12,  1889. 


Head  Physicians^  Territory,  M,  W.  A. 


The  Omaha  Head  Camp  provided  for  and  elected  three 
Head  Physicians.  The  Board  of  Directors  have  subdi- 
vided the  general  jurisdiction  into  "  Physicians'  Dis- 
tricts," and  have  assigned  same  as  follows  : 

First  District. —  Dr.  Frank  Swallow,  Valley  Falls,  Kan- 
sas :  States  of  Nebraska,  Kansas,  North  Dakota,  South 
Dakota,  and  Missouri. 

Second  District. —  Dr.  C.  A.  McCollom,  408  Masonic 
Temple,  Minneapolis,  Minnesota  :  States  of  Minnesota, 
Michigan,  Wisconsin,  and  that  part  of  Illinois  lying  north 
of  the  south  line  of  Henderson,  Warren,  Knox,  Peoria, 
Woodford,  Livingston,  Ford,  and  Iroquois  counties. 

Third  District. —  Dr.  Isaac  L.  Potter,  Ackley,  Iowa  : 
State  of  Iowa,  and  that  portion  of  Illinois  lying  south  of 
District  No.  2  above  described. 

Applications  must  be  sent  to  the  physician  in  charge 
of  the  district  of  which  the  applicant  is  a  resident. 


The 


all  Men(giIhiIb(D)r 


(D)ir  Hmernesi, 


The  Royal  Neighbors  of  America. 


HE  Royal  Neighbors  of  America  is  an  associa- 
tion which  combines  Modern  Woodmen  of 
America,  their  wives,  mothers,  sisters,  daugh- 
ters, and  widows,  and  the  principles  upon  which 
it  is  founded  are  as  old  as  humanity  itself.  From  the  pages 
of  sacred  history  we  learn  of  the  creation  of  this  our  fair 
land,  which  was  crowned  with  innumerable  gifts  to  man, 
but  was  not  complete  until  that  of  an  help-meet  was 
added,  then  were  the  richest  virtues  of  heaven  made  the 
heritage  of  the  race  that  was  to  come  ;  these  are  they 
that  have  made  the  home  a  joy  to  behold,  and  given  faith 
for  doubt,  courage  to  strive,  and  hope  in  the  ultimate 
supremacy  of  honor  ;  these  virtues  form  the  true  prin- 
ciples of  fraternity.  The  Royal  Neighbors  are  an  help- 
meet to  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America. 

The  beauties  of  the  ritualistic  work  of  the  order  are  un- 
surpassed. Its  government  is  simple,  and  the  interests  of 
the  order  as  a  whole  are  fully  represented  in  and  pro- 
tected by  a  Head  Camp.  The  expenses  incident  to  the 
operation  of  the  order  are  merely  nominal. 

Nearly  six  years  ago,  December,  1888,  a  little  band  of 
women  (the  wives  of  members  of  Hazel  Camp,  No.  171, 
Modern  Woodmen  of  America,  of  Council  Bluffs,  Iowa,) 
met  and  formed  a  social  society  to  be  known  as  the 
"  Ladies  Auxiliary  "  of  Hazel  Camp  ;  its  objects  being  to 
entertain  and  help  to  increase  the  membership  and  en- 
courage the  building  up  of  the  order  of  the  Modern 
Woodmen  of  America.  This  society  met  once  a  month, 
giving  socials  and  entertainments,  and  assisting  in  many 
other  ways,  continuing  on  in  this  manner  until  October, 
1890,  when  it  was  determined  to  form  a  secret  organiza- 


360 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


tion.  With  this  purpose  in  view  these  ladies  energetically 
went  to  work,  and  the  result  was  that  at  a  meeting  held 
January  2d,  1890,  their  work  had  been  so  well  performed 
that  the  ritual  and  constitution  were  adopted,  and  articles 
of  incorporation  drawn  up,  when,  on  April  25th,  1890,  the 
order  was  duly  incorporated  under  the  laws  of  the  state 
of  Iowa,  with  the  Head  Office  at  Council  Bluffs,  the  fol- 
lowing persons  being  the  incorporators,  viz  :  Miss  Lillian 
Huff,  Mrs.  M.  L.  Kirkland,  Mrs.  M.  B.  Hayden,  Mrs.  S. 
Hennessey,  Mrs.  E.  F.  Belknap,  Mrs.  J.  A.  Swanson,  and 
Mrs.  M.  B.  Filbert,  all  of  whom  were  the  first  Head  Camp 
officers.  Then  the  new  order  of  the  Royal  Neighbors  of 
America  was  given  a  name  and  a  place  among  the  many 
fraternal  orders  of  the  world.  Thus  this  new  society 
sprang  into  existence,  choosing  for  their  motto  :  Faith, 
modesty,  courage,  unselfishness,  and  endurance,  with  the 
great  purpose  of  helpfullness  to  each  other  and  loyalty  to 
the  order  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America,  ever 
standing  true  to  them,  caring  for  the  sick,  and  encourag- 
ing those  fallen  by  the  wayside,  never  allowing  an  op- 
portunity to  pass  without  trying  to  promote  the  growth 
of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America. 

June  26th,  1890,  the  first  meeting  of  Head  Camp  was 
held  at  Council  Bluffs,  Iowa.  This  meeting  was  held  for 
the  purpose  of  completing  the  organization  of  the  Head 
Camp.  On  July  3d,  1890,  the  original  society  was  reor- 
ganized into  the  first  subordinate  Camp,  and  given  the 
name  ''Lily  Camp,  No.  1,  of  CouncilBluffs,  Iowa,"  which 
has  still  on  its  roll  of  membership  some  of  the  originators 
of  this  order,  and  has  always  had  the  honor  of  having  a 
Head  Camp  officer  from  among  its  members,  there  being 
two  at  the  present  time. 

At  a  special  meeting  held  April  7th,  1891,  a  resolution 
was  passed  admitting  men,  who  were  members  of  the 
Modern  Woodmen  of  America  in  good  standing,  as  hon- 
orary members  of  the  order. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


361 


The  first  annual  meeting  of  the  Head  Camp  was  held 
the  first  Wednesday  in  January,  1892,  in  Council  Bluffs, 
Iowa.  S-ix  Camps  were  reported,  with  an  aggregate  mem- 
bership of  three  hundred.  The  following  named  persons 
were  elected  as  Head  Camp  Officers  for  the  year  1892  : 

Supreme  Oracle  —  Mrs.  G.  W.  Eastman. 

Supreme  Vice-Oracle  —  Mrs.  A.  E.  Blazer. 

Supreme  Recorder — Mrs.  J.  R.  Carrothers. 

Supreme  Receiver  —  Mrs.  P.  J.  Hennessy. 

Supreme  Marshal  —  Mrs.  N.  J.  Swanson. 

Supreme  Chancellor — Mrs.  W.  E.  Cady. 

Board  of  Managers  —  Mrs.  J.  E.  Van  Gilder,  Mrs.  S. 

H.  Filbert,  Mrs.  K.  C.  Ramsey,  Mrs.  E.  E.  Adams, 

Mrs.  C.  S.  Sprackman. 

At  the  Head  Camp  meeting  of  the  Modern  Woodmen 
of  America,  held  in  Omaha,  Nebraska,  November  15th, 
1892,  a  request  was  made  by  the  Royal  Neighbors  of 
America  that  they  be  recognized  as  an  auxiliary  of  that 
order,  when  a  resolution  was  adopted  recognizing  them 
as  such,  and  by  this  action  the  order  was  stimulated  to  a 
more  substantial  growth. 

At  the  second  annual  meeting  of  the  Head  Camp,  held 
at  Omaha,  Nebraska,  January  4th  and  5th,  1893,  eighteen 
Camps  were  reported,  with  an  aggregate  membership  of 
eight  hundred  and  fifty.  This  convention  marked  a  new 
epoch  in  the  order,  when  it  w^as  at  this  time  realized  that 
a  beneficiary  plan  should  be  adopted.  The  matter  was 
taken  up  and  discussed,  and  the  proposition  made  a  part 
of  the  Revised  Constitution.  The  following  named  persons 
w^ere  elected  as  Head  Camp  Officers  for  the  ensuing  year  : 

Supreme  Oracle  —  Mrs.  G.  W.  Eastman. 
Supreme  Vice-Oracle  —  Mrs.  A.  Olsen. 
Supreme  Recorder  —  Mrs.  Florence  Brown. 
Supreme  Receiver  —  Mrs.  P.  J.  Hennessey. 
Supreme  Marshal  —  Mrs.  0.  E.  Walker. 


362 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh 


Supreme  Chancellor  —  Mrs.  M.  M.  Hodges. 
Supreme  Inner  Sentinel  —  Mrs.  E.  Huminston. 
Supreme  Outer  Sentinel  —  Mrs.  T.  G.  Franks. 
Board  of  Managers  —  Mrs.  K.  C.  Ramsey,  Mrs.  A.  E. 

Blazer,  Mrs.  E.  D.  Watt,  Mrs.  H.  E.  Shidner,  and 

Mrs.  J.  E.  Van  Gilder. 

The  third  annual  meeting  of  the  Head  Camp  was  held 
in  Peoria,  Illinois,  January  3d,  4th,  and  5th,  1894,  when 
the  total  number  of  Camps  reported  in  good  standing 
was  forty-five,  making  the  number  of  new  Camps  organ- 
ized during  the  year  1893  twenty-seven,  with  an  aggregate 
membership  of  seven  hundred  and  eighteen,  and  the  total 
aggregate  being  one  thousand^  five  hundred  and  sixty- 
seven. 

At  this  meeting  it  was  decided  that  in  order  to  com- 
plete the  insurance  department  it  would  be  necessary  to 
re-incorporate,  when  it  was  decided  to  re-incorporate 
under  the  state  laws  of  Illinois,  the  matter  being  placed 
in  the  hands  of  the  Supreme  Board  of  Managers,  with 
power  to  act  in  the  matter  of  re-incorporating  and  com- 
pleting the  establishment  of  the  insurance  to  conform 
to  the  statute  laws  of  Illinois.  The  Head  Office  of  the 
order  was  permanently  located  at  Peoria,  Illinois.  The 
present  Head  Camp  Officers  were  elected  at  this  meeting, 
viz  : 

Supreme  Oracle  —  Mrs.  E.  D.  Watt,  Omaha,  Neb. 
Supreme  Vice-Oracle  —  Mrs.  F.  L.  Horton,  Concordia. 
Kas. 

Supreme  Recorder  —  Mrs.  Winnie  Fielder,  Peoria,  111. 
Supreme  Receiver — Mrs.  Florence  Brown,  Council 
Bluffs,  Iowa. 

Supreme  Chancellor  —  Mrs.  W.  E.  Cady,  Omaha,  Neb. 
Supreme  Inner  Sentinel — Mrs.  Lizzie  Douglass,  Con- 
cordia, Kas. 

Supreme  Outer  Sentinel  —  Mrs.  G.  M.  Shaver,  Omaha, 
Neb. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Boole. 


863 


Board  of  Supreme  Managers  —  Mrs.  K.  C.  Ramsey, 
Manito,  111.;  Mrs.  Mary  Wind,  Council  BlafFs, 
Iowa;  Mrs.  Lizzie  Grist,  Decatur,  111.;  Mr.  Ira  L. 
Maxson,  Horton,  Kas.;  Mr.  Tom  G.  Franks,  Peoria, 
111. 

After  this  meeting  there  was  a  great  awakening  among 
the  Modern  Woodmen  Camps  in  the  interests  of  the  Royal 
Neighbors  of  America,  which  has  resulted  in  an  addi- 
tion to  the  order  of  nineteen  Camps,  with  an  aggregate 
membership  of  nine  hundred  prior  to  June  15th,  1894. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Managers,  held  April 
28th,  1894,  a  committee  of  three,  consisting  of  Head  Clerk 
C.  W.  Hawes,  Directors  J.  G.  Johnson  and  J.  W.  White, 
of  the  Modern  Woodmen  management,  were  appointed  to 
assist  the  Supreme  Board  of  Managers  of  the  Royal  Neigh- 
bors in  the  final  completion  of  the  insurance  department, 
which  places  the  work  beyond  a  doubt  of  its  near  com- 
pletion, which  will  be  on  a  plan  similar  to  that  of  the 
Modern  Woodmen  of  America. 

From  this  small  beginning  an  order  has  been  developed 
into  a  membership  of  twenty-five  hundred  strong,  and 
destined  to  be  the  associate  of  Woodcraft  for  all  time  to 
come. 

Mes.  E.  D.  Watt,  Supreme  Oracle. 


The  third  annual  convention  of  the  Royal  Neighbors 
of  America  met  in  Peoria,  January  8d,  and  remained  in 
session  five  days.  The  most  important  work  done  was 
the  perfecting  of  a  plan  of  insurance.  Articles  of  incor- 
poration were  taken  out  under  the  laws  of  Illinois. 
Policies  will  be  issued  for  $500  or  $1,000.  The  next 
gathering  will  be  held  at  Kansas  City,  Kansas,  the  first 
Wednesday  in  January,  1895.  The  following  officers 
were  elected  at  Peoria  : 


364 


The  Woodman' s  Hand-Book. 


Supreme  Oracle  —  Mrs.  E.  D.  Watt,  Omaha,  Neb. 
Supreme  Vice  Oracle  —  Mrs.  Horton,  Concordia,  Kas. 
Supreme  Recorder  —  Mrs.  Laura  Ash,  Elgin,  111. 
Supreme  Receiver — Mrs.  Florenco  Brown,  Council 
Bluffs,  Iowa. 

Supreme  Chancellor  —  Mrs.  W.  E.  Cady,  Omaha,  Neb. 
Supreme  Marshal  —  Mrs.  C.  H.  Riepen,  Omaha,  Neb. 
Supreme  Inner  Sentinel  —  Mrs.  Lizzie  Douglass,  Con- 
cordia, Kas. 

Supreme  Outer  Sentinel  —  Mrs.  G.  M.  Shaver,  Omaha, 
Neb. 

Supreme  Board  of  Managers  — Mrs.  Lizzie  Grist, 
Decatur,  111.;  Mrs.  K.  C.  Ramsey,  Manito,  111.; 
W.  I.  Slemmons,  Peoria,  111.;  Mrs.  Mary  Wind, 
Council  BluflPs,  Iowa;  Ira  Maxon,  Nortonville,  Kas. 

Head  Physician  —  Dr.  Graham,  Lincoln,  Neb. 

This  is  the  first  order  that  we  know  of  that  is  composed 
of  and  controlled  chiefly  by  women.  That  they  are  am- 
bitious and  determined  to  succeed  we  have  no  doubt;  in 
fact,  the  adoption  of  an  insurance  feature  goes  to  show 
the  business  qualifications  of  the  women  at  the  head  of 
the  order,  and  they  certainly  deserve  their  full  meed  of 
success.  They  have  our  most  sincere  wishes. —  Fraternal 
Monitor. 


Women  in  Fraternal  Societies. 


At  the  National  Fraternal  Congress  Emma  M.  Gillette, 
of  Washington,  D.  C,  delivered  an  address,  the  vital 
points  of  which  are  embodied  below  : 

The  reason  that  in  ordinary  life  insurance  there  is  op- 
position to  women  is  because  the  women  who  do  insure 
lead  very  unhealthy  lives,  especially  at  the  period  of 
maternity.    That  is  why  the  percentage  of  women  that 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh, 


365 


die  is  1.23  per  cent  to  1.10  of  men.  Aseptic  practice  has 
lessened  danger  of  death.  The  science  of  medicine  has, 
I  believe,  more  power  for  good  in  treatment  of  pregnancy 
than  is  generally  believed.  Then  there  is  what  is  called 
the  "moral  hazard,"  an  indefinite  term. 

This,  as  applied  to  female  risks,  seems  to  be  a  liability 
to  fraudulent  insurance.  This  is  because  men  are  sup- 
posed to  insure  wives  to  put  them  out  of  the  way.  Under 
the  change  of  laws  so  that  the  woman  has  control  of  her 
own  funds,  the  same  risk  lies  in  insuring  men.  The 
other  hazards  are  said  to  be  lack  of  integrity  in  women, 
difficulty  in  securing  examinations,  and  monetary  difficul- 
ties. As  to  lack  of  integrity,  a  woman  may  deny  she  has, 
it  is  said,  an  incurable  disease.  This  is  the  result  of  legal 
disability  which  gives  women  the  idea  that  the  foundation 
of  business  is  fraud,  not  honesty.  Her  financial  depend- 
ence exaggerates  the  value  of  dollars.  Fraternal  societies 
based  on  equality  of  sexes  have  not  these  risks.  As  to 
difficulty  of  examination,  women  generally  recognize  that 
in  entering  into  the  business  world  they  must  submit  to 
to  business  rules.  If  they  do  not  recognize  this  they  have 
no  business  to  be  admitted.  As  to  monetary  interest, 
women  earn  now  about  $4,000,000  annually. 

This  is  the  measure  of  monetary  interest  for  insurance. 
The  women  who  insure  are  educated  professionally  and 
in  business.  They  are  wage  earners  who  cannot  afford 
to  be  sick  on  pain  of  losing  salaries.  The  value  of  wife 
insurance  is  great  in  the  matter  of  home  expenditures. 
It  would  seem  to  be  the  best  policy  to  have  the  insurance 
of  parents  divided.  Men  have  no  immunity  from  dis- 
ease. A  wife  dying  may  leave  a  poor  sick  husband. 
Had  she  left  an  insurance  a  great  deal  of  hardship  would 
have  been  avoided.  The  wife  will  meet  sickness  and 
death  with  greater  calm  if  she  knows  her  illness  will  not, 
in  the  case  of  a  fatal  end,  embarrass  the  family.  In  sick- 
ness she  will  be  less  hesitant  to  ask  for  the  best  treat- 


366 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Book. 


ment.  The  Penn  Insurance  Company  in  1893  justifies 
itself  with  figures  for  insuring  men.  Meeck's  tabula- 
tion (1881)  gives  the  death  from  childbirth  and  puer- 
peral diseases  as  9.1.  These  tabulations  are  incomplete. 
The  percentage  of  deaths  from  pregnancy  in  the  Ameri- 
can Legion  of  Honor  is  5.11,  and  in  the  Knights  and 
Ladies  of  Honor  from  female  diseases,  excluding  tumor 
and  cancer,  8.74. 

The  speaker  called  present  legislation  largely  a  sex  ar- 
istocracy. The  cry  the  men  put  up  when  the  officials  at- 
tempted to  give  women  the  preference  in  opening  the 
Cherokee  strip — "  Equal  rights  to  all,  privileges  to  none  " 
—  is  a  good  business  motto.  Death  is  robbed,  men  say,  of 
some  of  its  pangs  by  the  thought  that  provision  has  been 
made  for  the  family.  The  wife  knows  as  well  as  the  hus- 
band the  household  needs.  Generosity  that  puts  all  the 
insurance  on  the  wife  and  none  on  the  husband  does  not 
deserve  the  name.  As  the  Penn  Insurance  Co.  report  is 
right  in  saying  that  the  home  surroundings  should  at  first 
be  made  the  subject  of  careful  investigation.  In  localities 
where  the  company  has  female  examiners  they  should  be 
invariably  employed  to  examine  applicants  of  their  own  sex. 

The  results  in  the  orders  that  have  admitted  women  are 
best  shown  by  reference  to  their  latest  reports.  The  fe- 
male membership  in  three  of  the  largest  orders  in  1893  is 
given  as  follows  :  Knights  and  Ladies  of  Honor,  32,500  ; 
Order  of  Chosen  Friends,  11,732  ;  American  Legion  of 
Honor,  8,662  ;  total,  52,894. 

This  forms  a  fair  basis  of  calculation.  The  reports  of 
the  Chosen  Friends  for  s^even  years,  ending  1893,  shows 
that  the  excess  of  men's  deaths  over  women's  was  from 
2.05  per  cent  to  4.80,  and  that  it  was  never  less.  In  the 
American  Legion  of  Honor  after  the  first  two  thousand 
the  proportion  is  in  favor  of  the  women.  Though  there 
are  more  females  than  males  in  the  Knights  and  Ladies 
of  Honor,  the  number  of  male  deaths  has  been  in  excess 
of  the  women. 


The  Woodman^ s  Hand-Booh. 


367 


Fraternal  societies,"  said  the  speaker,  "  organized 
within  the  last  fifteen  years  generally  admitted  women 
unless  they  were  founded  on  the  military  idea.  The  sav- 
age instinct  of  man  to  don  a  uniform  [laughter]  dates 
back  to  war  paint  and  feathers,  and  is  incomprehensible 
to  the  other  sex.  Had  the  stor}^  of  the  Garden  of  Eden 
been  written  by  a  woman  [laughter,  of  course]  for  the 
credit  of  her  sex,  Adam  would  have  fallen  ;  the  serpent 
would  have  tempted  him  with  a  uniform  instead  of  with  a 
knowledge  of  good  and  evil.  [More  laughter  and  ap- 
plause.] Sir  knights  with  no  jousts,  tournaments,  or  cru- 
sades are  anachronisms  explainable  only  on  the  grounds 
of  this  hereditary  instinct.  They  yield  to  popular  de- 
mand sufficiently  to  have  auxiliary  societies  of  women. 
*       *       %       *       %       %       ^       *  * 

"  Besides  the  business  question,  we  have  a  social  one. 
How  have  women  done  their  part  in  the  council-room  ? 
In  my  own  city  and  order  it  is  better  in  every  way  to  have 
women  members.  The  only  council  that  ever  tried  to  ex- 
clude them  has  finally  surrendered  its  charter  and  was 
consolidated  with  a  council  having  women  on  its  rolls. 
In  the  meetings  the  decorum  has  been  greater,  the  busi- 
ness more  expeditiously  transacted.  The  conviviality  de- 
veloped after  the  lodge  has  frequently  made  the  dignified 
head  of  the  family  the  butt  of  the  comic  newspapers  and 
the  paragrapher.  The  point  of  the  joke  is  lost  when  the 
husband  and  wife  are  both  on  the  same  side  of  the  door. 

"  Women  are  glad  to  acknowledge  the  value  the  partici- 
pation in  the  business  of  the  lodge-room  has  been  to  them. 
It  has  been  a  training  in  organization,  self-control,  ready 
debate,  and  hence  crystalization  of  thought,  and  the  sub- 
mission to  the  will  of  the  majority  in  order  to  accomplish 
good  results.  The  lessons  of  justice,  liberty,  equality,  and 
fraternity  should  be  like  the  handful  of  corn  in  the  earth 
on  the  top  of  the  mountain  —  'The  fruit  thereof  shall 
shake  like  Lebanon.'  " 


t 


24 


The  Woodman'' s  Hand-Book. 


371 


OPENING  ODE.    No.  i. 

E.  D.  Leland.  T'wng— Webb. 

1.    A  -  gain  with  welcome  greeting,  Kind  Neighbors  now  we  come, 


(2.  m  , 

ft  f 

— ^ — # — ^— 

1  

Fine. 

To  watch  and  guard  the 

S     •  : 

fu  -  ture,  For  t' 

^  

aese  we  love  at  h 
^     ^  ^ — # 

ome. 



H 

D.  S.  We  now  as-cribe  the  hon  -  or     Due  to  His  ho  -  ly  name. 


Each  thankful  to  the  Giv  -  er      Of    ev  -  'ry  earth-ly  claim, 

I  1    J     J  ^: 

2  The  officers  in  station, 

The  Camp-fire  all  ablaze, 
And  every  wandering  Stranger 

On  it  with  joy  may  gaze. 
The  working  tools  are  ready. 

The  Beetle,  Axe  and  Wedge, 
The  Perfume,  Fruit  and  Water, 

We  to  the  Strangers  pledge. 

3  Guard  well  your  treasures,  Neighbors, 

And  ever  ready  be 
To  help  the  mourning  loved  ones. 

When  we  have  crossed  life's  sea. 
Let  justice  rule  your  actions, 

And  generous  conduct  own. 
That  happiness  and  plenty 

May  all  our  efforts  crown. 


372 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


OPENING  ODE.    No.  2. 


M.  H.  Underwood 


—Harwell. 


1  s— ^ 

 ^t-H- 

-.-y-i^  

s    S  1  J.  ^ 

L  s    S    '  ^ 

J  x,v..gx.^v,x^,  ,  ^   Un-to  God,  , 

"j  Grateful  praise  and  love,so  ten-der,  For  the  joy  of  meeting  here. 


From  all  cares  and  sorrows  free,  Here  we  meet  fra-ter-nal-ly- 
From  all  cares     and  sorrows  free,  Here  we  meet      fra-ter-nal-ly — 

^  ^  .(2.     ^  ^  I       ^  N  ^  ^  I 


V-V— 


-A-4- 


Round  our  Camp-fire's  rud-dy  glow, 


Let  our  band  no  discords  know. 


2  With  the  Axe,  the  Wedge  and  Beetle 

Dismal  forests  have  been  cleared ; 
By  their  use  a  faithful  people 

Cities  fair  and  grand  are  reared. 
Emblems  of  our  chosen  band — 
Idle,  then,  we  will  not  stand; 

Work  we  will!  our  cause  is  just, 

Charity  our  hope  and  trust. 

3  Neighbors,  then,  be  mindful  ever. 

From  our  ranks  all  discord  spurn, 
From  our  lives  the  dross  we'll  sever, 

That  our  Camp-fires  long  may  burn. 
Then  our  shield  will  brightly  gleam, 
And  our  stars  will  radiant  beam; 

Palms  of  peace  will  round  us  stand, 

As  we  jonrney,  hand  in  hand. 


The  Woodman'' s  Hand-Book . 


373 


CLOSING  ODE.    No.  i. 


yw^ie— America. 


^  ^ 


1.  Long  live 


mi 


der  bright,     Off  -  spring  of 


truth  and  right,  Sent  from  a  -  bove;  Long  may  our 
Neigh  -  bors  stand,      A      firm,     u   -  nit    -    ed  band, 

-#-       -0-  -»-  -»-  -»-•  -#-  -#-  

 — \-      r    — 1^1-+  1  r — ^ 


^>  S      «  ^ 

^             1  I 

Strong  pil  -  lars 

WTT=r\ 

b^'       '  i 

in      our    land.     Our  pride  and  love. 

r:  1 

r' — —  s  • — 1 — ^  \  • — 1 —  n 

374 


The  Woodman^s  Hand-Book. 


CLOSING  ODE.    No.  2. 

Tune— liHTnox. 


1.  Now 

let    us,  ere  we 
r-  ^  • 

i 

part,  The 

:^ 

pledge  of  friendship 

give, 

— ^-r— ^— r 
d  h-id — 

— 1  «  «!  J  

,  •  •  1—  - 

E'er     to    be   one  in    heart,  And     al-ways  faith-ful  live; 


— ^  — A  r- 

— •  0  •  A — 

— #— 

And 

in   our  band  let 
— -  X 

there  be  found  The 
m      »      m      m  . 

And    in   our  band  let   there  be  found  The  hope  of  peace  and 


hope  of  peace  and  happiness.  The  hope  of  peace  and  hap-pi  -  ness. 

hap-pi-ness.  The  hope  of  peace         and  hap-pi  -  ness. 

2  In  all  our  walks  we  prove, 

And  by  the  open  hand, 
Our  warm  fraternal  love 

For  those  who  join  our  band. 
These  words  repeat  before  we  go: 

Love  rules  above  and  here  below, 

Love  rules  above  and  here  below. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


375 


THE  BRAVE  OLD  OAK, 

Hbnby  F.  Chorlet.  Mrs.  W.  A.  Northcott, 


1.  A  song  to  tlie  oak,  The  brave  old  oak  Who  hath  ruled  in  the  greenwood  long; 

■   |>  ,(g  «-r(^  ^-rf^  *-rf=2  TrfS^tr 


|22  p--J(U — iZK 


5t 


r 

Here's  health  and  renown  to  his  broad  green  crown,  And  his  fifty  arms  so  strong. 

-(22. 


•©> — -»—»—* 


•P2- 


4— M- 


i 


1=4 


f5>  


There's  fear  in  his  frown  when  the  sun  goes  down,  And  the  fire  in  the  west  fades  out; 


-0- 


Heshoweth  his  might  on  a  wild  midnight  "When  the  storm  thro'  his  branches  shout, 


-•—•--I 


376 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


The  Brave  Old  Oak. 


Chobus. 


Then  here's  to  the  oak,  the  brave  old  oak,  Who  stands  in  his  pride  a  -  lone; 


rf=2  ^- 

:t==t: 

 ^ 

— ^ 

1  

-0- 

nl  1  

 »- 

m 

b>_IJ 
-<J — J- 

-1=2 — Y 

m 

-5^ — id- 

— 1 — 1- 

And  still  flourish  he,  a  hale,  green  tree,"When  a  hundred  years  are  gone. 


2  In  the  days  of  old,  when  the  spring  with  cold 

Had  brightened  his  branches  gray, 
Through  the  grass  at  his  feet  crept  maidens  sweet, 

To  gather  the  dew  of  May, 
And  on  that  day  to  the  rebeck  gay 

They  frolicked  with  lovesome  swains; 
They  are  gone,  they  are  dead,  in  the  churchyard  laid, 

But  the  tree  it  still  remains. 

3  He  saw  the  rare  times  when  the  Christmas  chimes 
'  Were  a  merry  sound  to  hear, 

When  the  squire's  wide  hall  and  the  cottage  small 
Were  filled  with  good  Woodman  cheer. 

Now  gold  hath  the  sway  we  all  obey, 
And  a  ruthless  king  is  he; 

But  he  never  shall  send  our  ancient  friend 
To  be  tossed  on  the  stormy  sea. 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh. 


377 


ROCK  OF  AGES. 


Dr.  Thos.  Hastings. 


-\ 

 ib-^- 

-^■^ — ^ — J — 

i 

fete 

-1    1  J. 

1.  Eock 

# 

of 
# 

A  -  ges,  cleft  foi 

me,   Let  me 

^2  

hide  my  -  self  in 

1       1  ' 

-   «  — #— 

i=^— f==t- 

-©> — — »-= — » — 

-  ^F— 

"1 — 

 1  ^- 

^ 

1    1    1  -, 

-^-^ — J — ~i — 

^^^=^^^ 

:J7^  - 

 ITT-* 

1  J  r 

i 

_ 

-.^-i — #  0  J 

1 

Thee;  Let  the  wa-ters  and  the  blood, From  Thy  riv- en  side  which 


i 


— ?y- — »— w-^z? — ^g: — r"^~  2?  • — #     — 2? 

flowed,  Be  of  sin  the  double  cure,  Save  me  from  its  guilt  and  pow'r. 

^  tf^^r^^  ^-r«2  »^^r(^-.  1  1  i- 


2  Not  the  labor  of  my  hands 
Cen  fulfill  Thy  law's  demands; 
Could  my  zeal  no  respite  know, 
Could  my  tears  forever  flow, 
All  for  sin  could  not  atone. 


3  Nothing  in  my  hand  I  bring. 
Simply  to  Thy  cross  I  cling; 
Naked,  come  to  Thee  for  dress, 
Helpless,  look  to  Thee  for  grace; 
Foul,  I  to  the  fountain  fly, 


Thou  must  save,  and  Thou  alone.     Wash  me,  Savior,  or  I  die. 


While  I  draw  this  fleeting  breath, 
When  mine  eyes  shall  close  in  death, 
When  I  soar  to  worlds  unknown, 
See  Thee  on  Thy  judgment  throne j 
Eock  of  Ages,  cleft  for  me, 
Let  me  hide  myself  in  Thee. 


378 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


THE  MERRY  WOODMAN  AND  THE  SAW. 

(Tune  from  "H.  M  S.  Pinafore.") 

1.  Kind  Woodman  I've  im-por-tant  in-form-a      -       tion,  Sing 

2.  Kind  Woodman  at  your  work  do  not  be  sigh     -     ing,  Sing 


-9— 


hey,  the  gallant  Woodman  that  you  are — 
hey,  the  gallant  Woodman  that  you  are — 


A- 
This 


(i 


*  * 


-i- 


i5 


bout  a  cer  -  tain  rare  in  -  1  -  ti 
ver  -  y  night  the     chips     will  be 


a  -  -  -  tion,  Sing 
fly     -    -     ing,  Sing 


€—9- 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book.  379 


The  Merry  Woodman  and  the  Saw. 


 N~ 

 1  

hey,  the  mer-ry  ^ 
hey,  the  mer-ry  "\ 

iVood-man  a 
Vood-man  a 

 ^ 

nd  the 
nd  the 



saw. 
saw. 

1  """^ 

T 
T 

he 
he 

 ^ir"iii  ^sr"i^ — 

— «  

 — ^ 

-#  

 J  ^  ^  

-V  

LU___  1 

1  1?'— 1  

^  r- 

1  ^ 

r  ^ 

mer  -  ry, mer-ry  Wood-man,  The  mer-ry,  mer-ry  Wood-  man,  Sing 

-17 ,  7     •  • 

 ^  

F 



-9- 

-H  ^1     1*  1  1 

 V 

hey,  the  mer-  ry 

Wood  -  man 

and  the 

^  

saw.  ... 

— >  

-J  '1  1  X— ^  - 

i           1  ^ 

\-l  ! 

380 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Booh, 


THE  WOODflAN'S  JUBILEE  SONG. 

(Tune  "To  the  Work,"  W.  H.  Doane.) 
C.  C.  Hassler.  Arr.  by  J.  G.  Ray. 


1  i 

 i^-H  

-A 

-J  J— 

— ^ — 

Hi 

# — 

1^ 

1.  When  you  hear  far 

^  .  r-  -r  --g:^-g:4 

ana  near 

r  f- 

Voic-es  sc 
#  ^ 

)unding  loud  and  clear, 
-•-    -»-    -0-*    -m-  -#- 

— #  

0  

— »  — »  » — ^ 

-1— — 1  1  

 -9 — 1 — H 

-^ 

— ^  ^-^  -. 

^ — 1^- 

— ^~ 

t 

-I* — — 

As  they  s 
-#-  - 

well  on 

r  r 

a  bright 

r  r 

and 
-•-  -1 

9- 

oy  -  ful 

sum-mer  day; 

^:  r  r  , 

^  r  r  - 

 h 

/— 

r-i — ^ 

i     5 : 

 p^— 

1- 

'Tis    the  tramp,  stead  -  y  tramp 

Of  the  woodmen  from  the  camp, 

— m  » — 

»  • — •  »— 4 

0 

-» — 

^  [— 

-V — ^- 

^ 

1 

— i< 

—  A       =     ^  -1 

— ^» — 

•  — ^  ^ 

« — 

— 

1 

As  they  haste  to 
-#- 

-#-    -#-  -1— 

the  woods  o'er  the 

hills 
-#- 

far     a  -  way. 

^  -1^ 

1          1               1  -1 

 ^ — 

-4-  V  V    n  q 

Chorus. 

 #-r 





 h 

-?= 

-4- 

J  •  *  " 

To  the  woods, 

then 

a  - 

way, 

To  the 

r — r 

r 

•  • 

— 1  

LI  ,  'U  1  1 

To  the  woods  then    a  -  way,  then  a  -  way, 


The  Woodman's  Hand-Book. 


381 


The  Woodman's  Jubilee  Song. 


woods   the  Woodmen  love;   As  free  from 


\^      V      V       ^    \^  V 

To  the  woods  the  Woodmen,  the  Woodmen  love; 


care,  with  Neighbors  share,  with  Neighbors  share 


i 


As   free  from  care,  with  Neighbors  share, 


5: 


All  the 


-  ures     of        the  Wood  -  men's  day. 


2  See  them  go,  high  and  low, 

Friends  and  Neighbors  that  you  know. 

Won't  you  join  while  you  may,  and  still  there's  lots  of  room? 
Fall  in-line,  rain  or  shine, 
We  will  have  a  jolly  time, 

i^'or  the  Woodmen  Neighbors  are  to-day  on  the  boom. 


3  Hear  the  notes,  stirring  notes, 

Of  the  music  as  it  floats, 
How  it  makes  every  heart  round  this  Camp  Fire  now  feel  gay, 

And  at  night,  with  deligh^. 

Friends  and  Neighbors  all  unite. 
In  their  praise  of  the  pleasures  of  the  Woodmen's  day. 


Team  of  Victory  Camp,  No.  452,  Greenville,  Illinois. 


1.  W.  A.  McLain,  Venerable  Consul. 

2.  Dr.  N.  H.  Jackson,  Worthy  Adviser. 

3.  C.  E.  Cook,  Banker. 

4.  Alfred  Adams,  Escort. 

5.  M.  C.  HuETER,  Watchman. 

6.  Isaac  Norman,  Chief  Outlaw. 

7.  Dr.  B.  F.  Coop,  Outlaw. 

8.  W.  E.  Robinson,  Chief  Forester. 

9.  Robert  C.  Morris,  Forester. 
10.  Ward  Reid,  Forester. 


11.  S.  W.  Robinson,  Forester. 

12.  Charles  A.  Hueter,  Forester. 

13.  Fritz  Leidel,  Forester. 

14.  Elvin  W.  Miller. 

15.  Will  S.  Foster,  Forester. 

16.  Don  V.  Poindexter,  Forester. 

17.  J.  W.  Blanchard,  Forester. 

18.  Frank  T.  Reid,  Forester. 

19.  J.  G.  Ray,  Forester. 


The  Origin  of  the  Secret  Society. 


The  following  is  a  paper  read  by  Neighbor  Edwin  Beard,  Wat- 
seka,  Illinois,  at  the  meeting  of  Camp  No.  91,  Milford,  Illinois  : 

Venerable  Consul  and  Neighbors  : 

There  is  a  vast  difference  between  the  social  status  of  humanity  in 
primeval  history  and  that  in  the  history  of  our  own  times.  As  the 
plane  of  civilization  rises,  society  becomes  more  complex.  There  is 
a  mighty  gulf  between  the  simplest  forms  of  animal  life  and  the  mar- 
velous structure  —  the  symbols  of  ourselves  —  of  which  it  has  been 
said  :    "  We  are  fearfully  and  wonderfully  made." 

All  people  do  not  accept  the  theory  of  evolution  in  nature,  but  no 
one  doubts  that  there  has  been  from  the  earliest  time  until  the  pres- 
ent, and  which  is  still  continuing,  and  will  so  continue,  an  evolution  in 
society.  One  of  the  traits  that  go  to  make  up  the  present  fabric 
of  society,  one  of  the  most  endearing  as  well  as  one  of  the  most  ancient^ 
i«  the  cause  of  our  assembling  here  to-night. 

,.\way  back  in  the  pristine  ages,  when  society  was  yet  chaos  and 
Civ^ilization  an  unborn  child,  as  if  by  instinct  of  nature  and  self- 
preservation  men  banded  together  to  secure  themselves,  their  homes, 
their  property,  and  their  dependents  against  the  attacks  and  inroads 
of  enemies.  In  the  process  of  time  these  assemblages  attained  to  the 
dignity  of  tribes  ;  from  tribes  they  grew  to  migratory  nations  ;  from 
that  to  states  with  fixed  abodes,  governed  by  laws  wisely  formed  and 
ably  executed,  though  too  often  rather  by  the  conquest  of  the  sword 
than  the  power  of  the  pen.  This  was  the  instinct  of  self-preservation^ 
which  is  more  amply  enrolled  upon  the  pages  of  history. 

But  there  is  another  trend  of  this  idea  of  preservation  less  ob- 
servant, less  apparent,  less  known,  but  equally  human  and  equally  in- 
stinctive—  less  general,  but  more  special.  More  special  and  better 
adapted  to  the  wants  of  those  for  whose  protection  it  had  its  birth 
and  origin.  It  seems  to  have  arisen  to  supplement  laws,  legislative 
enactments,  and  governmental  statutes.  This  idea  is  the  secret  and 
fraternal  lodge,  whose  beginning  dates  almost  as  far  back  as  the  com- 
mencement of  history  itself.  It  can  claim  for  its  past  a  time  as  remote 
as  Solomon  and  equalling  his  reign  in  glory.  Who  can  read  of  the 
heroic  deeds  of  the  Knights  of  St.  John  without  feeling  the  noblest 
emotion  swelling  and  surging  in  his  breast  ? 

Throughout  the  middle  ages  in  Europe,  when  nations  were  gov- 
erned by  feeble  laws  and  ruled  by  the  palsied  hands  of  kings,  the  code 
of  no  country  then  was  strong  enough  to  protect  the  rights  of  all  its 


iv 


SeleUed  Literature. 


people.  Not  only  did  there  spring  up  the  feudal  system,  in  which  the 
lord  or  baron  became  the  shield  and  protector  of  the  peasantry  who 
tilled  his  estate,  and  who  in  return  swore  to  an  unswerving-  fealty, 
but  throughout  all  the  civilized  portions  of  Europe  at  that  period 
there  grew  up  thousands  of  secret  and  powerful  institutions  which 
championed  the  cause  of  home,  liberty,  and  loved  ones,  unterrified 
alike  by  kings  and  emperors,  or  the  plottings  of  an  ambitious  and  too 
earthly  church.  These  secret  organizations  were  not  composed  of 
members  who  were  slaves  of  the  soil,  nor  did  they  belong  to  that 
upper  class  composed  of  courtiers,  knights,  and  aristocrats.  They 
came  from  the  great  middle  classes  of  society,  the  traders,  the  ar- 
tisans, the  builders,  the  architects,  the  inventor,  and  the  merchant  — 
the  true  forerunners  of  our  modern  civilization.  These  silent,  secret- 
working  orders  had  not  the  glare  and  glitter  that  marked  the  institu- 
tion of  chivalry.  The  one  was  strong,  aggressive,  and  open  ;  the 
other  was  hidden,  defensive,  and  unconquerably  potent.  One,  having 
lived  out  its  day  of  usefulness,  has  departed  to  return  no  more ;  the 
other  numbers  its  millions  in  the  lodges  of  to-day. 

Among  these  secret  organizations  that  claim  a  common  kinship  in 
origin,  purpose,  and  usefulness  there  still  exists  some  of  the  old,  to 
which  large  numbers  of  new  ones  have  been  added.  On  the  highest 
hills  and  in  the  lowest  valleys  congregate  the  devoted  brethren  of 
that  ancient  and  majestic  order  of  Freemasonry.  The  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows  numbers  its  members  by  the  hundreds  of  thous- 
ands, and  wherever  the  man  goes  who  wears  the  three-linked  badge 
of  his  noble  oi'der,  there  goes  a  man  with  the  instincts  of  the  Good 
Samaritan.  That  beautiful  order  of  the  Knights  of  Pythias,  con- 
tinually expanding  and  multiplying,  and  whose  grand  design  is  to  per- 
petuate and  spread  the  sublime  sentiment  that  knit  the  soul  of  Damon 
to  his  Pythias,  is  no  doubt  represented  here  -to-night.  All  these  so- 
cieties, and  many  others  that  might  be  named,  have  wrought  work 
that  time  never  can  efface,  and  for  which,  were  human  monuments  to 
be  built,  though  piled  stone  on  stone,  justice  would  not  be  done. 

But  there  is  one  great  distinction  between  the  secret  societies  I 
have  named  and  the  one  for  whose  advancement  we  have  met  to-night. 
All  societies  but  ours  have  been  founded  upon  the  one  central  idea  of 
mutual  protection  and  self-preservation.  This  is  founded  upon  a  still 
nobler  principle  —  one  of  the  greatest  and  purest  of  all  motives  that 
govern  human  action.  All  secret  organizations  save  the  Modern 
Woodmen  of  America  work  for  the  interests  of  each  individual  and 
the  order  as  a  whole.  Let  this  statement  not  be  deemed  as  a  deroga- 
tion from  the  stainless  records  of  those  most  worthy  and  older  orders. 
But  here  we  have  a  young  and  growing  order,  glorying  in  its  youth- 
ful vigor  and  its  never-failing  success,  whose  one  great,  grand  aim  and 
purpose  is  dedicated  to  the  life  of  another.  If  it  is  sweet  to  die  for 
one's  country,  if  it  is  God -like  to  give  up  one's  life  for  another,  it  is 
noble  and  manly  to  live  for  the  life  of  another.    This  is  our  creed.  It 


Selected  Literature. 


V 


is  deeply  engraven  on  the  tablets  of  our  hearts.  It  is  lettered  out  on 
our  spotless  banners  white.  Badges,  symbols,  and  certificates  of 
membership  bear  its  impress,  and  on  every  charter,  ritual,  or  manual 
there  may  be  seen,  as  though  written  in  letters  of  living  light,  the 
motto  of  our  faith  —    Pur  Autre  Vie.'''' 

The  birthplace  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  is  within  the  confines  of 
our  own  great  state.  Its  members  are  composed  principally  of  the 
sturdy  yeomanry  of  the  country.  Avoiding  the  great  cities  with 
their  thousands  of  enervating  influences,  their  unhealthiness,  and 
their  moral  blights,  it  confines  itself  to  the  pure  and  wholesome  at- 
mosphere of  the  country.  Its  territory  comprises  the  fairest  portion 
of  the  state  of  Illinois.  In  the  great  corn  belt  of  our  state,  a  body  of 
tillable  soil  that  is  unsurpassed  in  the  abundance  of  its  productions 
by  any  other  of  equal  area  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  is  the  fatherland 
of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America.  No  other  similar  institution 
was  ever  organized  under  auspices  so  favorable,  nor  had  a  beginning 
so  promising,  or  a  success  so  unparalleled. 

It  is  said  that  Hercules  while  even  in  infancy  manifested  some  of 
that  extraordinary  prowess  that  enabled  him  in  after  years  to  gain 
undying  fame  and  immortal  renown  by  strangling  with  his  infant 
hands  the  great  serpents  that  attacked  him  in  his  cradle.  This  order 
of  ours,  like  an  infant  Hercules,  while  still  rejoicing  in  the  glorious 
period  of  thrifty  youth,  has  achieved  already  such  wonderful  results 
that  search  where  we  will  the  like  cannot  be  found. 

Such  a  favorable  beginning  augurs  well  for  the  future.  Certainly 
in  our  own  case  we  can  say  "a  good  beginning  is  half."  Surely  we 
have  here  proven  the  adage,  "well  begun,  half  done."  The  order 
has  well  started,  it  has  always  conquered  the  difficulties  which  beset 
it,  and  you  and  I  can  abide  by  the  conviction  that  it  has  come  to 
stay. 

The  society  of  Modern  Woodmen  is  distinctly  an  American  pro- 
duction. It  is  deeply  hearted  with  the  American  idea  of  home.  Like 
the  Odd  Fellows'  order,  it  is  indigenous  to  American  soil ;  that  soil, 
that  land,  that  country  which  above  all  others  on  earth  is  permeated 
with  the  sweet  and  binding  influence  of  home.  That  nation  is  most 
powerful  whose  people  have  the  strongest  love  and  veneration  for  the 
institution  of  home.  The  French  race  has  had  a  great  historj^,  yet 
the  French  language  contains  no  word  for  home.  No  wonder  that  the 
population  of  France  is  at  a  standstill.  No  wonder  that  the  popula- 
tion during  an  entire  generation  has  grown  only  a  million,  while  Ger- 
many, her  ancient  enemy  just  across  the  Rhine,  the  fires  of  whose 
hearth  have  lit  the  imaginations  of  her  greatest  poets,  adds  a  million 
of  souls  to  her  census  every  year.  I  pity  the  man  without  a  country  ; 
I  weep  for  the  man  without  a  home.  Who  here  to-night  has  not  felt 
the  gush  and  thrill  of  joy  when  after  time  and  distance  have  sep- 
arated him  from  the  loved  ones  at  home,  he  turns  once  more  his  face 
toward  the  dearest  spot  on  earth  ? 


vi 


Selected  Literature, 


It  was  for  the  protection  of  this  home,  this  retreat  from  the  slings 
and  sorrows  of  the  world,  that  our  noble  order  was  founded.  It  was 
to  keep  the  fire  of  the  domestic  altar  undying-  that  originated  our  in- 
stitution. It  was  founded  to  be  the  protecting  shield,  through  whose 
massive  covering  no  dart  or  missile  of  the  enemy  could  penetrate. 
That  though  the  leader  perished,  the  advancing  column  should  con- 
tinue on.  That  though  the  good  head  of  the  family  should  cease  n  ) 
more  to  be,  though  the  loving  father  should  be  suddenly  stricken 
down  by  the  one  foe  that  never  fails,  the  family  of  his  pride  and  de- 
light should  not  suffer  or  want.  That  though  the  devoted  husband 
should  pay  the  debt  of  nature,  the  wife  of  his  youth  should  still  feel 
about  her  the  strong  arm  of  his  influence.  That  though  the  brother 
should  be  laid  away  in  rest  forever,  his  sister,  the  sole  relic  of  that 
once  happy  home,  should  not  be  left  unprovided  for.  That  though  a 
dutiful  son,  the  last,  the  only  surviving  prop  of  an  aged  and  affec- 
tionate mother,  should  pass  to  an  untimely  end,  that  dear  old  mother 
who  had  suffered  the  pangs  which  gave  him  birth  and  life,  and  whose 
soft  white  hand,  though  old  and  withered  now,  had  so  often  soothed 
him  in  the  long,  long  hours  of  night,  should  not  be  left  alone  in  her 
old  age  without  means  of  support.  And  she  is  not.  The  little  vine- 
clad  cottage  is  paid  for,  or  shall  be,  every  dollar  of  it.  That  lonely 
mother,  that  desolate  widow,  shall  still  sit  secure  in  her  own  home ; 
her  cruise  of  oil  shall  never  go  empty,  and  the  fuel  at  her  fireside  shall 
always  be  replenished,  for  she  has  money,  and  she  has  friends  who 
will  not  forget  the  widow  while  there  is  a  dollar  left  in  the  coffers  of 
the  order  of  which  her  husband,  son,  or  brother  may  have  been  a 
member.  And  when  the  lamp  of  life  has  flickered  out  in  that  with- 
ered, shrunken  form,  no  shroud  of  charity  shall  her  decent  limbs  en- 
fold when  her  burial  day  shall  come,  for  that  has  all  been  guarded 
against  by  one  whose  motto  was  "Pur  Autre  Vie,"  and  lived  for 
another  life. 

A  member  in  good  standing  in  our  order  knows  that  his  family 
will  not  suffer  want  when  he  has  done  with  life.  He  knows  the  gaunt 
wolf  will  never  bark  at  his  door.  He  knows  that  at  the  hour  of  his 
death  he  leaves  a  legacy  that  will  serve  as  a  bulwark  against  the  tides 
of  poverty.  This  thought  cheers  him  on  in  life's  unceasing  strife, 
braves  him  to  breast  the  heaviest  surges  of  an  uncertain  sea.  He 
knows  that  the  trees  he  now  plants  will  some  day  bear  rich  fruits,  and 
he  knows  that  he  has  an  interest  in  a  bank  that  will  never  break,  and 
on  which  no  run  will  ever  be  made. 


Selected  Literature. 
Our  Fraternities, 


vii 


At  a  meeting  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America,  held  in  Wood- 
men hall,  at  Lincoln,  Nebraska,  on  the  evening-  of  December  10th, 
1891,  the  following  brilliant,  eloquent,  and  beautiful  address  was  de- 
livered by  Captain  W.  H.  Woodward.  It  is  poetry  set  in  prose,  and 
is  worthy  of  a  careful  perusal  by  all  classes  : 

It  is  recorded  in  holy  writ  that  the  scribes  of  Israel  and  Judah 
used  every  year  to  go  up  to  the  Holy  City  and  with  songs,  prayers, 
and  sacrifices  to  commemorate  the  triumphs  of  the  fathers  by  the  Red 
Sea,  at  the  fords  of  Jordan,  and  upon  the  fields  of  Barak's  victory. 
The  states  of  Greece  used  to  celebrate  their  national  festivities,  and 
in  their  assemblies  were  wont  to  listen  to  the  stories  of  their  mighty 
ancestors  as  told  in  the  history  of  Herodotus  or  the  immortal  verse  of 
Iliad  or  Odessey.  We  have  no  feasts  of  the  passover  or  tabernacles 
of  commemoration.  We  have  no  amphictyonic  councils  or  Olympian 
games.  We  have  met  here  not  to  celebrate  the  deeds  of  great  men 
or  to  worship  at  their  shrine,  but  to  celebrate  principles  which  live 
long  after  men  are  dead  and  forgotten.  Celebrations  of  this  character 
are  held  in  obedience  to  that  faculty  of  our  natures  which  enables  us 
to  communicate  our  thoughts,  our  sympathies,  and  our  happiness 
with  what  is  distant  in  time  and  space,  and,  looking  beyond,  to  hold 
communication  at  once  with  our  ancestors  and  our  posterity.  Upon 
the  one  hand  history  portrays  to  us  the  successes  and  triumphs  of  the 
past,  while  upon  the  other,  by  anticipation,  spread  before  us  the 
bright  pictures  which  those  of  a  future  age  may  enjoy.  We  stand  to- 
day in  the  central  office  of  this  wonderful  telephonic  connection, 
adjusting  the  wires  which,  correctly  or  incorrectly,  must  transmit  the 
thoughts,  the  sentiment,  and  the  sympathies  of  the  one  age  to  that  of 
another. 

Standing  in  that  relation  we  are  here  assembled  to  celebrate  and 
emphasize  the  principles  taught  by  one  of  the  noble  fraternities  of 
America,  and  while  so  doing  to  pay  our  homage  to  the  precepts  and 
teachings  of  the  noble  order  to  which  we  belong. 

Past  events  are  celebrated,  not  so  much  because  of  the  brilliancy 
and  excitement  with  which  they  were  ushered  in  upon  the  stage  of 
action  as  because  of  the  effects  which  they  have  had  upon  posterity. 
The  most  brilliant  military  achievements  and  some  of  the  greatest 
battles,  though  exciting  great  admiration  at  the  time,  have  not  a 
single  claim  to  lasting  commemoration.  Of  the  thousands  of  victories 
which  have  been  won,  of  all  the  human  battlefields  which  have  been 
drenched  with  human  blood,  of  the  thousands  of  chieftains  whose 
stars  of  glory  they  hoped  would  ever  shine  upon  the  pages  of  their 
country's  history,  how  few  continue  long  to  interest  and  instruct 
human  kind. 


viii 


Selected  Literature. 


The  names  of  great  generals  whose  deeds  at  this  time  challenge 
our  admiration  can  be  counted  on  the  fingers  of  one  hand.  Leaving 
no  lasting  results  upon  the  prosperity  and  happiness  of  humanity, 
they  pass  away  and  are  forgotten.  They  are  only  mentioned  in  his- 
tory as  so  much  loss  of  human  life  or  the  destruction  of  so  much 
property. 

Upon  the  other  hand,  events  exciting  but  little  or  slight  attention 
at  the  time  they  transpired,  coming  with  no  display  or  gorgeous 
array,  no  rush  of  adverse  battalions,  no  tramping  of  cavalry  or 
thundering  of  artillery,  have  transmitted  their  successes  through 
succeeding  ages  to  succeeding  generations.  Their  importance  is  in 
their  results.  They  are  called  great  because  great  things  have  fol- 
lowed them. 

Go  with  me  into  the  past ;  follow  me  as  I  lead  you  into  the  unpre- 
tentious surroundings  of  the  different  places  where  fraternities  like 
ours  have  been  formed.  There  you  may  see  grouped  about  on  rude 
wooden  chairs  a  few  men  from  the  humble  walks  of  life.  In  the  work 
in  which  they  are  engaged  they  have  neither  high  social  position, 
the  power  of  wealth,  or  the  prestige  of  political  favor  to  aid  them.  It 
is  the  birth  time  and  the  christening  of  the  several  orders  into  whose 
living  those  men  breathed  the  breath  of  truth  and  infused  the  blood 
of  friendship.  There,  in  the  cradle  of  their  infancy,  they  rocked  and 
nourished  the  child  which  to-day,  with  the  vigor  and  nobility  of  full 
manhood,  exerts  an  influence  for  good  over  the  intellectual  develop- 
ment and  social  well-being  of  this  people,  more  powerful,  I  believe, 
than  any  other  organization  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  this 
broad  land ;  and  at  this  hour  their  colossal  grandeur  is  the  pride  of 
their  members  and  the  wonder  of  the  world.  At  the  formation  of 
many  of  these  orders  our  country  was  in  the  infancy  of  its  physical, 
educational,  social,  and  political  growth.  But  what  a  mighty  change. 
Upon  the  broad  prairies  where  the  buffalo  roamed  at  will  are  broad 
cultivated  fields,  flourishing  towns,  and  large  commercial  cities. 
Along  the  pathway  where  the  brawny  Indian  stood  the  railway 
engine  speeds  its  way.  As  we  look  over  the  growth  and  development 
of  our  country  and  these  fraternal  orders,  it  seems  more  like  romance 
than  reality. 

There  is  scarcely  a  town  in  the  whole  land,  from  the  pine  forests 
of  Maine  to  the  arid  plains  of  Southern  California,  from  the  orange 
groves  of  Florida  to  the  cascades  of  Washington,  where  cannot  be 
found  a  building  upon  the  windows  of  whose  upper  story  are  to  be 
seen  the  signs  of  the  different  fraternal  organizations,  organized 
for  a  noble  purpose,  and  within  whose  community  is  not  felt  the  bene- 
ficent influence  of  good  fellowship.  And  to-day  from  every  hill  and 
valley  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  our  common  country  are 
ascending  the  thanks  of  thousands  to  our  all-wise  Creator  for  having 
given  us  such  noble,  good  men  as  those  who  founded  these  respective 
orders.  - 


Selected  Literature, 


ix 


To  the  encouragement  and  fostering  care  of  the  liberal  institutions 
of  our  country  may  be  attributed  the  large  prosperity  and  success  of 
these  fraternal  organizations.  On  the  soil  of  free  America,  more 
than  anywhere  else,  flourishes  every  institution  having  for  its  object 
the  alleviation  of  distress,  the  throttling  of  vice,  and  the  elevation  of 
the  human  race.  What  these  great  fraternities  do  for  their  own 
members  in  the  way  of  protection  and  help  cannot  be  estimated.  The 
light  which  in  this  way  has  been  let  in  to  dispel  the  gloom  of  dark- 
ness, and  has  brightened  both  the  home  and  the  heart,  can  never  be 
measured.  The  cups  of  human  misery  which  have  been  brushed 
away  for  the  cool  and  healing  potions  administered  by  a  brother's 
plenteous  hand  can  never  be  counted.  The  friendship  here  taught 
rests  in  motion.  The  current  of  fellowship  in  every  Modern  Wood- 
man's breast  causes  considerations  for  the  well-being  of  those  with 
whom  he  is  associated.  It  brings  men  together  in  a  spirit  of  loving 
companionship  as  they  tramp  along  the  pilgrim  way  of  earth, 
shoulder  to  shoulder,  hand  clasped  in  hand,  heart  beating  with  heart, 
as  they  march  along  life's  rugged  pathway  together.  Upon  such  a 
fellowship  the  very  breath  of  heaven  wafts  its  sweetest  perfumes. 

As  the  bringing  together  of  both  the  lamps  of  the  two  travellers 
affords  greater  light  for  the  guidance  of  their  footsteps,  so  indeed  do 
their  rays  penetrate  further  into  the  darkness  which  skirts  their 
pathway.  In  this  room  the  members  are  taught  to  recognize  the 
great  brotherhood  of  men,  to  discern  the  ties  which  bind  together 
the  great  human  family ;  and  if  they  but  follow  the  teachings  their 
good  influence  will  extend  far  beyond  the  pales  of  the  order.  An 
orderly  and  well  regulated  family,  trained  to  the  practice  of  honesty 
and  industry,  truthfulness,  and  religion,  cannot  dwell  by  the  side  of 
a  neighboring  family  of  loose  morals  and  slack  habits  without  shed- 
ding into  the  household  of  the  latter  the  sunlight  of  a  good  example. 
The  need  of  humanity  for  sympathy  and  aid,  the  mutual  dependence 
of  human  kind,  and  the  duties  that  result  from  it,  these  truths  are 
the  basis  and  essence  of  all  fraternities. 

Sir  Walter  Scott  has  written  that  "  the  race  of  human  kind  would 
perish  did  they  cease  to  aid  each  other."  Aristotle  declares  that 
"  whosoever  is  delighted  in  solitude  is  either  a  wild  beast  or  a  God." 
The  longing  desire  of  man  for  human  sympathy  is  as  universal  as  the 
air.  These  organizations  exisit  and  impress  themselves  upon  social 
life,  for  they  aid  us  in  smoothing  the  rugged  points  and  edges  of  life 
for  each  other. 

You  do  not  find  this  idea  of  mutual  dependence  limited  to  rational 
existence.  The  material  world  is  filled  with  it.  The  flowers  that 
adorn  and  refresh  the  globe  are  dependent  alike  upon  the  earth,  and 
air,  and  water.  The  streams  that  rush  unceasingly  to  the  sea  find 
their  never  failing  source  of  supply  from  the  evaporation  of  that 
oeean  which  they  aid  in  filling. 


X 


Selected  Literature. 


On  every  side,  in  every  phase  of  life,  you  find  this  truth  of  mutual 
dependence,  the  reciprocal  idea  of  nature's  economy,  closely  inter- 
woven with  and  permeating-  every  atom  of  life.  In  the  association  of 
man  with  man  is  this  truth  more  clearly  defined  and  developed.  To 
it  he  owes  the  protection  and  preservation  of  his  character,  his  prop- 
erty, and  his  life  —  for  in  union  there  is  safety  as  well  as  strength. 
It  is  the  bed-rock  of  government,  this  cohesion  of  individuals  for  the 
protection  of  the  whole.  It  is  the  difference  between  civilization  and 
barbarism,  between  law  and  anarchy.  It  is  the  associated  harmony 
of  individual  force,  the  glad  bondage  of  liberty,  the  clear,  cool 
atmosphere  of  government,  law,  society,  civilization,  and  peace  before 
the  miasmic  mists  of  unbridled  license  and  anarchy. 

These  fraternal  organizations  have  carried  brightness  into  many  a 
darkened  home,  and  sent  a  thrill  of  joy  into  many  a  despairing  soul. 
Oh,  ye  cynics,  who  sneer  at  fraternal  association's  ;  who  ridicule  the 
little  ceremonies  that  attach  themselves  to  this  work ;  who  walk 
upon  the  plane  of  being  above  the  rank  and  file,  and  breathe  a  more 
exclusive  atmosphere.  Oh,  ye  skeptics,  who  doubt  the  truth  of  a 
human  brotherhood,  who  call  friendship  a  sham  and  charity  a  de- 
lusion ;  who  speak  of  beneficial  orders  with  a  shrug  of  the  shoulders, 
and  dispute  the  good  of  their  existence,  come  with  me  and  visit  one, 
only  one  of  those  little  households  into  which,  through  the  agency  of 
the  lodge,  light  has  entered,  and  if  you  do  not  hang  your  heads  in 
shame,  then,  indeed,  shall  I  believe  that  there  are  some  souls  into 
whose  flinty  walls  the  truth  can  never  enter. 

This  is  a  selfish  world  ;  in  stating  this  I  state  a  truism  ;  but  it  is 
well  now  and  then  to  stop  and  consider  the  cold  selfishness  that  so 
often  dominates  our  humanity.  I  think  we  do  not  appreciate,  or 
rather,  that  in  the  whirl  and  clatter  of  life  we  do  not  remember  often 
enough  that  we  owe  certain  duties  to  those  around  us,  the  perform- 
ance of  which  we  should  not  evade.  That  in  this  human  life  so  filled 
with  experiments  and  saddened  with  miseries,  we  too  often  uncon- 
sciously utter  the  cry  of  Cain,    Am  I  my  brother's  keeper  ?  " 

Now,  I  believe  it  to  be  my  duty  and  your  duty  to  do  some  good  in  the 
world  ;  and  I  believe  that  I  can  do  it  more  effectually,  more  directly, 
more  certainly,  by  maintaining  my  connection  with  fraternal  organi- 
zations like  ours. 

In  a  nation  full  of  healthful  life  like  ours  contests  never  cease. 
The  life  of  a  nation,  like  that  of  individuals,  is  a  perfect  battle  against 
the  attacks  of  decay.  The  spirit  of  liberty  among  a  great,  free,  and 
active  people  can  never  say,  "My  work  is  done."  The  preparations 
for  new  contests  are  continually  ringing  in  our  ears.  The  contest  be- 
tween knowledge  and  virtue  on  the  one  hand  and  ignorance  and 
corruption  on  the  other  goes  on.  This  contest  will  never  stop 
until  the  lion  and  the  lamb  shall  lie  down  in  peace  together.  The 
future  of  this  people  holds  in  its  apocalypse  the  figure  of  a  man  ;  a 
man  who  makes  his  own  laws  and  keeps  them  ;  who  serves  the  state 


Selected  Literature. 


xi 


and  yet  is  free  ;  who  keeps  his  covenant  with  God  without  a  bond  and 
without  an  oath  ;  who  signs  no  contract  and  breaks  no  obligations ; 
who  lives  for  himself  without  selfishness,  and  dies  for  others  without 
regret.  Toward  this  type  of  ideal  manhood  all  the  tendencies  our 
civilization  are  converging,  and  it  is  the  imperative  duty  of  every 
patriotic  and  loyal  citizen  to  see  to  it  that  no  obstruction  hinders  or 
delays  its  consummation.  This  ideal  man,  who  is  to  be  the  coming 
glory  of  our  race,  will  never  be  born  of  despotism.  There  are  two 
kinds  of  socialism  in  this  world,  the  one  rational,  the  other  irrational. 
The  one  the  socialism  of  the  philosophers  and  sages,  the  other  the 
socialism  of  the  rabble  and  the  mob.  The  one  is  above  the  ordinary 
level  of  citizenship,  the  other  below  it.  The  one  by  constant  approxi- 
mations brings  us  nearer  and  nearer  to  the  standard  ideal  of  humanity 
which  is  to  be  the  glory  of  our  civilization  ;  the  other  gravitates  ever 
downward  toward  the  howling  animal  which  runs  with  bloody  jaws  to 
devour  and  kill.  Fraternizing  human  hearts  on  a  platform  broader 
than  party  and  wider  than  sectarianism  induces  a  generous  spirit  of 
toleration  and  breaks  down  prejudice.  In  order  to  prevent  men  from 
becoming  selfish  they  must  be  reached  through  their  social  natures. 
They  must  be  often  called  away  from  the  sordid  pursuits  of  life,  from 
the  buying  and  selling  and  getting  gain,  and  be  made  to  see  and  feel 
that  life  is  something  nobler  than  this.  Man  may  be  taught  that  the 
sweet  consciousness  of  being  helpful  to  his  fellows  is  the  sweetest  cup 
of  joy  this  life  affords  ;  that  the  thing  that  society  needs  now  is  not 
more  money  nor  more  brains,  but  more  heart,  more  human  sympathy, 
and  more  self-sacrifice.  It  ought  not  to  be,  as  it  is,  one  of  the  pro- 
verbs of  the  world,  that  "man's  inhumanity  to  man  makes  countless 
thousands  mourn."  The  truthfulness  of  this  proverb  is  a  mournful 
commentary  on  the  condition  of  the  human  race. 

It  must  be  conceded  that  the  chief  cause  of  selfishness  in  the  world 
is  the  lack  of  sympathy  among  men,  and  the  reason  that  society  is  so 
filled  with  jealousy  is  that  mankind  stands  so  far  apart  as  not  to 
know  each  other.  The  mountain  when  seen  from  a  distance  repels 
the  beholder  with  its  beetling  cliffs,  its  cold  and  barren  rocks,  and  its 
snow-covered  crest ;  but  on  a  nearer  approach  may  be  seen  sparkling 
brooks  leaping  and  laughing  among  the  rocks  ;  may  be  seen  flowers 
here  and  there  lending  their  sweetness  and  beauty  to  charm  the  be- 
holder away  from  the  contemplation  of  the  rougher  aspects,  and  the 
experienced  eye  may  discover  even  among  its  caverns  and  gulches 
indubitable  evidence  that  the  forbidding  surface  covers  mines  of  the 
most  precious  metals.  The  mountain  exterior  may  be  rough  and  i-e- 
pulsive  but  its  heart  is  filled  with  gold  and  silver  and  Ihc  most 
precious  and  rarest  jewels. 

So  of  the  human  character.  Let  these  forbidding  aspects  be  in- 
spected by  him  who  carries  the  lamp  of  charity  and  whose  soul  sends 
out  the  light  of  truth  and  love,  and  a  thousand  new  beauties  appear 
that  but  for  his  nearer  and  better  approach  would  never  have  been 


xii 


Selected  Literature. 


discovered.  The  Woodman  may  be  poor,  he  may  have  rough  and 
hard  hands  and  a  sunburned  face,  he  may  feel  that  a  cold  and  in- 
different world  passes  him  by  careless  of  his  toils  and  burden,  but  he 
knows  that  with  his  labor-stained  and  scanty  wardrobe  he  will  meet 
with  a  hearty  welcome  from  his  brethren  wherever  he  may  meet 
them,  and  a  willing  ear  and  a  sympathetic  heart  in  all  the  sorrows  of 
life.  When  disease  has  wasted  his  strength  and  robbed  his  wife  and 
child  of  the  support  of  his  strong  right  arm,  when  gaunt  want  came 
in  and  sat  down  by  his  household  as  a  guest  by  the  side  of  poverty, 
his  brothers  unlocked  their  treasures  and  opened  up  the  inexhaust- 
ible treasures  of  gentle  hearts,  and  drove  away  want  and  made  plenty 
come  in  and  abide  at  his  hearth  a  constant  guest. 

He  has  himself  borne  these  burdens  and  performed  these  kind 
offices  for  others.  He  has  been  an  eye  witness  to  these  demonstra- 
tions. He  knows  it  is  not  the  mean,  empty  profession  of  charity.  He 
has  given  as  well  as  received,  and  whatever  may  be  his  wealth  or 
position  in  life  he  is  made  to  feel  that  at  a  common  altar,  consecrated 
to  this  sacred  work,  that  he  is  the  peer  of  any  of  the  noble  men  who 
constitute  this  noble  circle.    And  so  he  is. 

He  has  not  lived  that  has  not  blessed  others.  He  may  have  passed 
the  allotted  time  from  the  cradle  to  the  grave,  but  he  has  known 
nothing  of  the  exquisite  enjoyment  of  life.  He  may  have  had  all  that 
wealth  and  position  could  give  him,  he  may  have  had  every  want  met 
and  tasted  all  the  sensual  pleasures  that  riches  could  purchase  him  ;  he 
may  have  inhaled  all  the  sweet  odors  of  flattery  that  float  around  those 
in  high  places,  but  his  soul  at  last  will  be  as  barren  as  a  desert,  for  he 
has  never  wiped  a  tear  from  the  face  of  the  weeping  or  planted  a  new 
joy  in  the  human  heart.  We  talk  of  our  rapid  progress  and  our  civil- 
ization. It  remains  to  be  seen  what  is  the  substantial  value  of  our 
grand  discoveries.  This  can  only  be  told  when  sufficient  time  shall 
disclose  to  what  extent  their  influence  and  power  elevates  and  purifies 
the  great  mass  of  humanity.  If  this  boasted  civilization  reaches  man 
wherever  he  may  be  found  and  fills  him  with  the  noblest  aspirations  to 
be  like  his  Creator,  to  make  his  life  nobler  and  his  heart  kinder,  then 
let  the  song  of  praise  be  sung  ;  let  the  shout  ring  out  loud  and  clear 
that  man,  immortal  man,  is  coming  up  by  our  improved  locomotion  to 
a  higher  plane,  that  the  electric  light  has  made  him  see  with  a 
brighter,  clearer  vision  his  duty  and  destiny  ;  that  the  telegraph  and 
telephone  have  put  the  language  of  truthfulness  and  soberness  upon 
his  lips,  then  we  can  say  with  joyful  huzzas,  all  hail,  progress  !  But 
if  this  cannot  be  truthfully  said,  then  let  our  boastings  cease.  If  the 
lever  of  progress  is  not  long  enough  to  reach  to  the  depths  of  human- 
ity, is  not  strong  enough  to  lift  man  to  a  better  life,  it  is  not  worthy 
the  name.  Man  must  be  the  local  point  of  all  this  modern  light  or  it 
is  no  better  than  darkness.  The  chiefest  and  best  science  is  that  of 
knowing  how  to  live. 


Selected  Literature. 


xiii 


When  the  last  page  of  the  history  of  the  race  is  written  and  the 
record  of  human  progress  is  complete,  that  page  will  be  the  brighest 
that  contains  the  record  of  that  peerless  age,  more  than  any  other 
period,  in  which  was  accomplished  the  subduing  of  human  hate  and 
conquering  of  man's  selfishness,  and  in  leading  the  great  mass  of 
humanity  out  of  the  marshes  and  malaria  of  discord  and  strife  up  to  a 
high  and  generous  plane,  with  a  proper  regard  for  others  rights  and 
reputations,  where  they  inhale  the  pure  atmosphere  of  mutual  confi- 
dence and  respect. 

It  will  outshine  the  boasted  times  that  produce  here  and  there 
some  mighty  warrior,  gifted  statesman  or  orator,  an  accomplished 
painter  or  eminent  poet.  These  men  of  wonderful  power  and  gifts 
come  once  in  a  century  and  flash  across  the  path  of  humanity  like  a 
brilliant  meteor.  The  golden  age  will  be  when  men  of  whatever 
talent  or  station  will  come  to  a  better  understanding  of  themselves 
and  their  relations  to  God  and  their  fellow  men.  We  have  given  too 
much  attention  and  worship  to  individual  genius  and  not  enough  to 
the  ordinary  man.  Let  not  so  much  care  be  given  to  improving  ma- 
chinery and  increasing  locomotion,  but  rather  let  the  deep  concern  be 
for  a  higher  type  of  humanity. 

The  grand  mission  of  our  order  is  in  bringing  humankind  into 
better  relations  with  themselves.  We  should  adopt  the  creed  of  our 
great  poet,  Longfellow,: 

"  Conscious  of  right,  not  fearing  wrong  ; 
Because  I  am  in  love  with  love, 
And  the  sole  thing  I  hate  is  hate  ; 
For  hate  is  death,  and  love  is  life, 
A  peace,  a  splendor  from  above ; 
And  hate  a  never-ending  strife, 
A  smoke,  a  blackness  from  abg^ss 
Where  unclean  spirits  coil  and  hiss. 
Love  is  the  Holy  Ghost  within  ; 
Hate  the  unpardonable  sin  ; 
Me  who  preaches  otherwise  than  this 
Betrays  his  master  with  a  kiss." 


The  Fraternal  Feature. 


A  gentleman  once  said  to  the  Head  Consul :  "  How  can  you  take 
the  responsibility  of  guaranteeing  the  payment  of  the  benefit  certifi- 
cates, in  case  of  the  death  of  the  members  of  your  order,  when  you 
have  no  reserve  fund  and  are  dependent  upon  the  voluntary  payments 
of  the  members?  Suppose  they  should  refuse  to  pay,  and  what 
guarantee  have  you  that  they  will  continue  to  pay  their  assessments  ?  " 
Mr.  Northcott  replied :    "  How  can  the  United  States  government, 


xiv 


Selected  Literature. 


with  a  large  debt,  much  exceeding-  the  money  in  the  treasury,  place 
a  two  per  cent  bond  upon  the  market  ?  It  is  because  each  govern- 
ment bond  has  back  of  it  sixty-five  millions  of  the  greatest  people  on 
the  globe,  who  are  bound  together  by  a  common  interest.  So  every 
certificate  in  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  has  back  of  it  fifty- 
five  thousand  of  the  brainy  working  men  of  this  northwest,  who  have 
a  common  interest  in  seeing  that  it  is  paid  in  full." 

The  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  is  much  like  the  representa- 
tive government.  The  members  of  the  order  are  its  rulers  and  the 
officers  are  its  servants.  It  is  not  a  joint  stock  company  managed  by 
a  few  individuals  with  an  indefinite  tenure  of  office  and  without  ac- 
countability to  any  one  but  themselves,  but  it  is  a  great  fraternity 
that  has  immediate  control  through  its  delegates  of  the  affairs  of  the 
order.  If  officers  become  incompetent  or  corrupt,  they  are  speedily 
displaced  and  new  ones  put  in  their  places.  This  order  possesses  the 
power  of  self-preservation  and  self-perpetuation.  The  statistics  of 
history  show  that  but  two  or  t'hree  fraternal  benefit  societies  have 
failed  since  the  foundation  of  this  government,  while  the  number  of 
mutual  insurance  companies  without  the  fraternal  feature  that  have 
failed  is  very  great.  The  fraternal  insurance  order  once  established 
seems  almost  immortal. 

From  a  consideration  of  these  statements  the  importance  of  the 
fraternal  feature  in  our  order  becomes  obvious,  even  from  the  stand- 
point of  the  soundness  of  insurance.  But  there  is  still  more  in  our 
great  order  than  the  insurance  feature.  There  is  something  in  the 
brotherhood  of  man.  There  is  something  in  the  sympathy  in  times 
of  distress ;  the  kindly  visit  from  a  Neighbor  when  we  lie  on  a  sick 
bed,  and  the  help  given  to  our  families  when  we  are  so  unfortunate  as 
to  not  be  able  to  help  them  ourselves.  None  of  us  are  so  strong  or  so 
fortunately  situated  that  there  may  not  come  to  us  a  dark  hour  when 
we  need  a  kindly  hand  to  help  us.  And  this  does  not  come  to  us  as 
charity,  for  we  have  a  right  to  it ;  we  would  do  the  same  ourselves 
for  other  Neighbors  in  distress,  and  we  have  a  right  to  expect  the 
sam  J  from  them.  One  stick  is  easily  broken,  but  a  bundle  of  sticks  is 
invincible.  It  is  a  grand  thought  that  fifty-five  thousand  Neighbors 
are  bound  together  as  with  a  common  cord  for  mutual  benefit  and  pro- 
tection.—  Head  Consul  Nortlicolt. 


Our  Territory, 


We  frequently  hear  the  inquiry  made  as  to  the  reason  why  the 
Modern  Woodmen  can  furnish  insurance  for  the  benefit  of  our  wives 
and  children  at  so  much  lower  rate  than  any  other  similar  order.  We 
have  heard  this  answered  in  various  ways,  but  we  think  one  great 


Selected  Literature. 


XV 


underlying  fact  that  controls  in  this  matter  is  not  fully  appreciated 
by  the  Woodmen,  generally.  Surely  it  cannot  be  that  all  of  this  dif- 
ference is  caused  by  superior  economy  in  management,  although  the 
record  of  fraternal  societies  shows  that  its  economy  in  expenses  is 
equalled  by  none. 

Neither  can  we  believe  that  it  is  caused  by  extra  precaution  taken 
by  our  Head  Physicians  and  those  co-operating  with  them,  although 
these  precautions  doubtless  save  us  thousands  of  dollars  every  year. 

The  fact,  however,  which  we  desire  particularly  to  emphasize  as 
the  great  reason  for  the  low  death  rate,  and  hence  cheapness  of  the 
indemnity  in  the  Modern  Woodmen,  is,  that  our  territory  is  the  most 
healthful  on  the  face  of  the  earth. 

It  will  be  found  impossible  to  select  any  such  an  extent  of  territory 
that  can  compare  with  it  in  the  health  and  long  life  of  its  inhabitants. 
It  is  drained  by  the  great  chain  of  lakes  on  the  one  side  to  the  sea,  and 
the  remainder  by  the  mighty  Mississippi,  the  Missouri,  Ohio,  Arkan- 
sas, and  the  Platte. 

Its  surface  is  such  that  almost  every  acre  will  soon  be  brought 
under  cultivation,  thus  leaving  no  malarial  swamps  to  breed  disease 
and  death. 

Its  climate  is  cold  enough  in  winter  to  destroy  the  germs  of  disease 
that  breed  in  the  heat  of  summer. 

No  epidemic  has  yet  been  able  to  travel  across  this  empire,  known 
as  the  northwest,  and  none  ever  will  be. 

In  the  United  States  the  average  number  of  deaths  each  year  is  one 
out  of  every  eighty-one  inhabitants.  In  the  gulf  states  the  rate  is  one 
in  sixty-three  ;  in  the  southern  states  one  in  seventy  ;  in  the  middle 
states  one  in  eighty-three  ;  and  in  the  northwestern  states,  one  in  one 
hundred  and  twenty. 

Thus  it  will  be  observed  we  occupy  the  best  territory  in  the  country. 

More  than  this :  we  have  taken  out  of  this  territory  the  southern 
end  of  Illinois  and  all  the  large  cities,  such  as  Chicago,  Milwaukee, 
and  Detroit,  which  makes  it  next  to  impossible  for  a  contagious  dis- 
ease to  strike  us  hard  enough  to  cripple  us,  let  alone  to  kill  us. 

This  we  regard  as  the  principal  reason  why  the  Modern  Woodmen 
furnishes  the  cheapest  indemnity  by  far  of  any  society  or  company  in 
the  world. —  Director  M.  W.  Matheics. 


The  New  Versus  the  Old, 


Old  men  tell  us  that  within  their  memory  it  cost  twenty-five  cents 
to  send  a  letter  from  Virginia  to  Massachusetts.  Now  two  cents  takes 
one  from  California  to  Upper  Canada,  and  a  nickel  takes  one  from 
here  to  the  Antipodes.  Surely  no  one  will  dispute  the  advantages  of 
this  change  to  the  masses  of  our  people. 


xvi 


Selected  Literature. 


Old  ladies  tell  us  of  the  time,  within  their  memory,  when  a  box  of 
matches  cost  twenty-five  cents,  and  contained  twenty-five  matches. 
Now  the  same  amount  of  money  supplies  an  ordinary  family  with 
matches  for  all  purposes  for  a  year.  Surely  no  one  will  question  the 
g-eneral  benefit  we  as  a  people  dc  rive  from  this  marked  reduction  in 
the  price  of  this  useful  article. 

Under  the  old  regime,  people  in  ordinary  circumstances  were  com- 
pelled to  forego  postal  communication  with  friends  and  relatives, 
and  also  to  be  content  with  the  uncertain  results  of  flint,  steel,  and 
tinder.  People  in  better  circumstances  exclusively  enjoyed  the  ad- 
vantages of  the  mails  and  the  luxury  of  the  ''locofoco  "  match. 

It  is  a  mark  of  marvelous  progress  in  material  things  when  the 
people  of  one  generation  enjoy  as  every-day  comforts  those  things 
which  were  luxuries  with  the  preceding  generation. 

Life  insurance,  under  the  old  plans  and  in  the  last  generation,  was 
a  luxury  none  but  the  well-to-do  could  afford.  Were  a  speaker  in  any 
assembly  to-day  to  ask  those  present  whose  fathers  carried  life  in- 
surance for  the  benefit  of  their  families  to  stand  up,  how  meagre 
would  be  the  response.  In  the  last  generation  the  man  who  carried 
life  insurance  was  the  exception.  In  this  generation  the  man  who  is 
without  this  protection  is  the  exception. 

This  wonderful  change  has  been  wrought  solely  by  the  introduction 
and  popular  adoption  of  the  co-operative  plan  of  life  insurance,  the 
best  example  of  which  we  believe  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America 
to  be.  These  modern  institutions  are  operated  so  exclusively  in  the 
interest  of  the  members  that  the  cost  has  been  reduced  almost  in  the 
same  ratio  with  the  cost  of  postage  and  matches. 

Some  of  the  luxurious  old  companies  which  saw  their  best  days 
under  obsolete  conditions,  and  found  their  scattering  patrons  in  a 
generation  which  is  rapidly  passing  away,  still  strenuously  insist  that 
twenty-five  cent  postage  must  be  better  than  two-cent  postage,  because 
—  it  costs  more.  But  the  ordinary  man  of  this  generation  is  getting 
to  be  as  skeptical  upon  that  point  as  he  would  be  upon  the  proposition 
that  the  flint  and  steel  was  handier  than  the  friction  match. 

The  luxurious  old  companies  insist  that  skepticism  is  a  sin  which 
should  not  be  tolerated ;  but  we  all  remember  that  Gallileo  was  that 
kind  of  a  skeptic,  and  so  was  Columbus,  and  Sir  Isaac  Newton,  and 
hosts  of  others  among  the  brightest  men  the  world  has  produced,  and 
we  know  that  their  skepticism  as  to  the  value  of  theories  which  were 
universally  accepted  by  preceding  generations,  stoutly  maintained, 
has  conferred  incalculable  benefits  upon  generations  succeeding  them. 
The  (insurance)  world  moves." —  Director  J.  G.  Johnson. 


Selected  Literature. 


xvii 


A  Welcome  for  Woodmen. 


Following-  is  the  address  of  welcome  by  Hon.  C.  D.  Holies,  at  Green- 
ville, Illinois,  June  25th,  ]891,  at  a  picnic  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of 
America : 

Mr.  Chairman,  Modern  Woodmen,  Ladies,  and  Gentlemen  : 

In  the  magnificent  constellation  of  counties  which  compose  the 
great  State  of  Illinois,  Bond  ranks  among  the  smallest  —  a  stur  of  the 
least  magnitude  ;  so  small,  indeed,  that  she  seldom  comes  within  the 
range  of  political  telescopes,  and  is  scarcely  known  by  many  of  those 
who  study  the  political  sky  !  But  though  her  modest  light  is  dimmed 
by  the  Jupiters  and  Saturns  of  our  state  system,  pure  and  bright  she 
ever  shines,  a  guiding-star  for  those  who  love  her  best. 

It  is  true  that  Bond  is  little,  but  allow  me  to  assure  you,  ladies  and 
gentlemen,  that  she  is  very  proud.  She  is  old,  but  her  heart  is  young. 
She  is  proud  of  a  brave  and  patriotic  past,  of  a  bright  and  promising 
future,  and  having  exercised  the  virtues  and  encouraged  the  sym- 
pathies of  the  human  heart  that  knit  the  world  in  kin,  she  has  kept 
her  youth. 

But  to-day,  Mr.  Chairman,  she  is  more  than  proud  ;  for  here,  in 
her  native  woods,  beneath  arching  boughs,  the  first  temple  of  the 
Almighty,  where  music  from  nature's  sweetest  harps  echoes  from 
shrub  and  stump,  from  hill  and  dale,  where  stereotypes  of  Divine 
ideas  appeal  to  the  living  soul,  inspiring  with  hope  and  renewing  faith 
in  the  Fatherhood  of  God  and  in  the  brotherhood  of  man  —  here  with 
a  heart  full  of  happiness  and  content,  full  of  sunshine  and  gladness, 
little  Bond  welcomes  to  her  hospitality  the  chief  officers  and  repre- 
sentatives of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America.  She  welcomes  you 
to  the  home  of  your  worthy  Head  Consul,  a  home  that  he  has  honored 
and  that  you  have  honored  by  honoring  him.  She  welcomes  you  as  a 
society  whose  influence  is  widespread  ;  whose  protecting  arm  is  ever 
stretched  out  to  aid  the  faint  and  weary  ;  whose  charity,  flowing  like 
a  crystal  stream,  un contaminated  by  ambition  or  self-interest,  waters 
the  earth  with  gladness  ;  whose  bounty  has  lifted  from  the  depths  of 
despair  the  widow  and  the  fatherless,  has  carried  peace  and  comfort 
to  many  a  shattered  hearth,  and  ""from  the  altar  of  each  peaceful 
heart  arises  the  fragrant  incense  of  its  thanks  ;  "  an  organization  that 
in  a  few  short  years  has  massed  together  more  than  fifty  thousand  of 
the  brave  and  brainy  men  of  the  great  northwest  under  its  banner, 
on  which  has  been  inscribed  by  the  hand  of  loving  charity,  in  letters 
of  living  light :  Pur  Autre  Vie.  What  a  grand  thought !  What  a 
noble  object  of  life !  What  ambassadors  to  the  heart !  What  won- 
drous words  !  Words,  Mr.  Chairman,  that  in  a  cold  and  selfish  world 
stand  out  like  jeweled  stars  on  the  mantle  of  night.  It  is  not  strange, 
then,  my  friends,  that  an  order  founded  upon  such  grand  and  humane 

a 


xviii 


Selected  Literature, 


principles  should  add  more  than  nine  thousand  to  its  membership 
during  the  present  administration,  and  become  a  pillar  of  strength 
among  the  great  benevolent  and  benefit  associations  of  the  nation. 
May  you  continue  to  grow  and  prosper.  May  your  future  as  a  society, 
and  as  individuals,  be  as  bright  and  cloudless  as  the  blue  sky  above. 
May  your  meeting  here,  under  the  auspices  of  "  Victory  "  and  asso- 
ciate Camps,  be  one  not  only  of  pleasure  and  profit,  but  a  page  il- 
lumined in  your  history.  May  we  all  receive  new  inspiration  to  go 
forth  to  higher  and  nobler  achievements  in  the  cause  of  humanity. 
These,  my  friends,  are  the  heartfelt  wishes  of  our  people,  and  rest 
assured  that  this  occasion  will  ever  be  cherished  as  a  bright  spot  in 
the  pathway  of  life  by  the  sons  and  daughters  of  little  Bond,  who 
greet  you  to-day  with  their  brightest  smiles  of  welcome. 

\ 


The  Ritual  Needs  no  Apology. 


The  following  interesting  paper  was  read  before  the  National  Fra- 
ternal Congress  by  Chill  W.  Hazzard,  of  the  Royal  Arcanum  : 

The  use  of  any  ritual  is  apt  to  be  viewed  with  contempt  by  the 
practical  man,  and  those  who  defend  it  often  do  so  in  a  feebly  apologetic 
tone.  The  fact  remains,  however,  that  almost  every  association  of 
human  beings  which  has  lived  long  enough  to  pass  into  history  has 
effectually  used  the  poetry  of  symbolism.  Ritualism  seems  to  be  a 
law  of  human  nature,  co-ordinate  with  the  inevitable  order  of  things, 
perennial  and  perpetual. 

A  ritual,  strictly  defined,  means  a  book  in  which  rites  or  forms  of 
observance  are  set  down.  As  used  in  the  topic  given  for  my  discus- 
sion, it  means  the  use  of  rites,  forms,  words,  motions,  and  signs.  A 
wider  definition  would  define  a  ritual  as  a  system  of  observances  which 
address  the  imagination,  memory,  and  feelings  through  the  senses 
by  certain  ceremonies  or  acts  intended  to  express  proper  feelings,  or 
to  illustrate  an  idea  with  reference  to  special  ends. 

The  motives  which  have  produced  ritualism — and  it  prevails 
everywhere  —  the  actual  mainspring  of  its  existence,  is  man's  irre- 
sistible craving  for  expression  in  forms. 

Ritualism  thus  defined  has  shaped  the  externals  of  all  the  great 
religions  of  the  world.  Thus  placed  upon  an  ethnic  basis,  it  must 
command  respectful  consideration. 

The  Egyptians  were  a  race  pre-eminently  given  to  ceremonies  and 
rituals  of  an  elaborate  character.  Wilkinson  says  (Ancient  Egypt, 
Volume  III.)  that  "no  nation  took  greater  delight  in  the  pomp  of 
ceremonies  than  the  Egyptians.    The  public  mind  was  constantly  en* 


Selected  Literature. 


xix 


tertained  by  the  splendor  of  striking-  and  impressive  ceremonies.  The 
intricate  mysteries  of  their  temples  were  made  splendid  by  proces- 
sions of  robed  priests."  In  fact,  everywhere  we  encounter,  in  the 
study  of  Egyptian  history  and  monuments,  ritualism  of  an  elaborate 
and  most  extraordinary  character. 

Turning  to  India,  we  find  in  Brahminism  a  nature-worship  purer 
than  any  other  of  the  polytheistic  systems.  The  Brahmin  worship- 
ped in  beautiful  temples  carved  with  ritualistic  designs,  filled  with 
shrines,  towers,  altars,  and  emblems,  and  his  mind  was  appealed  to  in 
ceremonies  made  up  of  symbolism,  consecrated  fire,  purification,  in- 
vocation to  the  sun,  and  sacrificial  ceremonies  to  the  new  moon. 

Buddhism  is  styled  the  Protestantism  of  the  East ;  it  objected  to 
the  ceremonials  of  Vishnu.  It  is  a  religion  of  ''individual  salvation 
based  on  personal  character."  As  long  as  Buddha  lived,  his  followers 
maintained  personal  asceticism,  but  at  his  death  Buddhism  followed 
the  natural  instinct  of  humanity,  and  appropriated  ceremonials  and 
ritualistic  forms  of  worship.  The  Buddhist  never  enters  his  temple 
without  an  offering  of  flowers  or  rice ;  he  joins  his  hands  and  lifts 
them  to  the  height  of  his  forehead ;  he  goes  to  his  temple  at  least 
once  in  every  full  moon  ;  he  burns  incense  of  sandalwood  dust.  This 
is  the  art  idea,  the  use  of  objects  to  arouse  the  mind  and  fix  the 
thoughts. 

The  followers  of  Confucius,  in  China,  have  ceremonials  and  a  cer- 
tain play  of  symbolic  imagery,  combined  with  liturgal  law,  for  the 
observance  of  rites.  Altars  dedicated  to  the  earth  are  square,  those 
dedicated  to  the  heavens  are  round.  In  winter  the  priests  wear  blue^ 
in  the  summer  saffron  ;  when  the  moon  is  full  they  celebrate  the  adora- 
tion in  robes  of  cream  white.  Confucian  worship  is  full  of  symbolic 
and  pictorial  ritual.  Before  the  gates  of  the  temple  stands  a  copper 
statue  whose  mouth  is  covered  with  three  fingers,  denoting  silence. 
Doctor  Pompelly  in  his  Middle  Kingdom  says  :  "  I  never  entered 
their  temples  without  a  feeling  akin  to  awe,  or  rather  that  sentiment 
which  ever  attaches  to  the  contemplation  of  those  things  hidden  be- 
hind the  veil  of  mystery."  And  in  saying  this  the  learned  doctor 
bears  testimony  to  the  power  of  ritual  to  impress  the  novitiate  with  a 
feeling  which  will  make  the  ceremony  most  effective. 

Turning  now  to  a  most  ancient  mystic  faith,  that  of  Persia,  the 
people  of  Darius  and  Xerxes,  we  encounter  marks  of  ritualistic  ser- 
vice, repeated  in  lines  of  strength  and  beauty.  It  was  not  a  system  of 
idolatry.  Rawlinson  says  of  it,  that  it  "  comprised  prayers  and  thanks- 
giving to  the  good  spirit  of  creation. "  Fire  altars  burned  perpetually, 
and  around  them  priests,  in  white  robes,  led  the  people  in  prayers  to 
the  sun,  as  a  symbol  of  the  Supreme  God.  The  sacred  fire  which 
burns  even  to-day  on  the  altars  of  Bombay  is  a  symbol  of  purity, 
warmth,  and  life.  Zoroaster  discovered  God  in  the  eternal  fire  ;  the 
flame  was  to  him  then,  and  is  to  his  followers  to-day,  a  type  of  im- 
mortality and  of  the  resurrection  of  the  soul. 


XX 


Selected  Literature. 


The  same  elaboration  of  ritual  exists  in  the  ancient  religions  of 
Assyria,  Babylonia,  Media,  Parthia,  not  always  decorous,  sometimes 
not  even  decent,  but  impregnated  throughout  with  man's  love  for 
ceremonies,  mysteries,  rites,  and  ritual. 

Mahomedanism  is  based  on  one  simple  affirmation  of  faith. 
''There  is  but  one  God,  and  Mahomet  is  his  prophet."  Surely  this 
does  not  invite  the  use  of  ceremonial.  It  does  not  suggest  those  strong 
appeals  to  the  senses  ;  no  sacrifice,  no  mysteries,  no  ritual.  It  evokes 
no  sentiment,  it  teaches  morals,  and  has  codes,  and  is  fatalistic.  Yet 
symbolism  underlies  the  undying  beauty  of  its  temples.  Its  heaven  is 
a  garden  of  delight  with  a  river  flowing  through  it ;  its  hell  a  couch 
of  fire  and  grievous  pain.  Among  the  oriental  peoples,  forms  and 
ceremonies  cannot  be  repressed.  The  rabbi  reads  the  Koran  with  a 
drawn  scimiter  in  his  hand,  to  indicate  that  Moslemism  won  its  way 
by  conquest ;  the  shoes  of  the  worshippers  are  removed,  and  the  faith- 
ful prays  kneeling  toward  Mecca,  and  this  he  does  five  times  a  day  at 
the  call  of  the  muezzins.  The  followers  of  Mahomet  nurture  their 
religious  feelings  through  ritualistic  forms  very  intense,  while  their 
pious  pilgrimages  to  Damascus,  Jerusalem,  Mecca,  and  Medina  are 
still  considered  the  holiest  actions  of  a  Mahomedan's  life. 

In  Judaism  we  meet  the  most  pronounced  type  of  ritualistic  prac- 
tice ;  especially  impressive,  as  it  is  said  to  be  the  outgrowth  of  Divine 
direction.  It  marks  the  climax  of  ceremonial  observance.  The 
Hebrew  ritual  was  consecrated  almost  by  God's  word  of  mouth,  and 
its  beneficent  effects  suggested  most  pointedly  in  commands  to  those 
who  were  to  "  work  in  the  sanctuary  according  as  the  Lord  had  com- 
manded." The  service  of  the  tabernacle  was  expressly  provided  for, 
and  that  of  the  temple  was  elaborate  and  wonderful.  The  sons  of 
Aaron  wore  a  special  apparel,  girted  about  the  waist  with  a  girdle  of 
needle-work,  while  the  high  priest  wore  a  belt  of  blue,  purple,  and 
scarlet,  intermingled  with  white,  and  marked  with  flower  forms. 
The  vesture  of  the  high  priest  was  resplendent  with  gems.  The 
ritual  of  the  temple  was  magnificent ;  the  eye  was  arrested  by  the 
sacrifice,  the  ascending  smoke,  the  flame,  the  moving  priests,  the 
motion  of  the  celebrants,  the  lustre  of  lights,  wreaths  of  fragrant  in- 
cense, and  the  pontifical  splendor  of  Solomon.  The  ritual  dominated 
the  service  in  a  series  of  symbols  whose  impressiveness  was  especially 
eloquent. 

I  make  no  allusions  to  the  ceremonials  of  Greece'or  Rome,  because 
they  seem  to  have  been  derived  from  the  Egyptian. 

Mexico  and  Peru  had  a  ritual,  formal  and  pompous.  According  to 
Prescott  they  overlaid  their  temples  with  precious  metals,  and  the 
Temple  of  the  Sun  was  "  literally  a  mine  of  gold."  What  more  effec- 
tive appeal  as  a  spectacle  than  these  costly  temples  of  South  America, 
dancing  with  lights  and  glistening  with  gold,  while  in  symbolism 
their  services  were  unusually  rich. 


Selected  Literature. 


xxi 


We  turn  to  the  savage  races,  to  the  barbarous  tribes,  and  we  find 
the  ritualistic  instinct  absent,  entirely  undeveloped.  They  have 
nothing,  worthy  the  name  of  religion  ;  they  have  something  little 
above  superstition,  a  fear  of  the  future,  half  awakened  emotions  not 
expressed  in  either  the  art  or  music  of  a  ritual.  Their  half  animal 
mind  barely  touches  the  realm  of  religious  ideas.  They  are  the 
vulgar  dupes  of  medicine  men  ;  the  rites  they  perform  are  the  frenzied 
exorcism  of  evil  spirits,  or  the  imbecile  pandemonia  of  a  war  dance. 
And  yet  among  the  wildest  tribes  of  Africa  we  read  of  certain  acts  of 
worship,  which  show  the  universal  instinct  for  forms,  although  they 
be  silly,  empty,  and  stupid. 

I  have  followed  ritualism  through  mankind,  showing  that  it  is  not 
a  chance  or  a  modern  device.  It  is  a  constitutional  inherent  necessity 
in  man,  to  express  his  feelings  in  an  outward  sensible  form  which  to 
him  fitly  excites  or  responds  to  the  emotions,  or  serves  to  express  an 
idea  by  a  symbol. 

The  acknowledged  power  of  the  Roman  church,  the  beautiful  ritual 
of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  church,  the  growing  tendency  of  all  the 
churches  to  a  form  of  service  less  rigid  and  more  elaborate,  show  that 
with  the  enlightenment  of  the  new  century  and  the  advancement  of 
civilization  the  growing  enrichment  of  public  worship  forbids  the 
idea  that  the  ritual  is  a  relic  of  barbarism  or  the  plaything  of  fools. 
Rather  it  increases  the  solemnity  of  worship,  and  clothes  its  cere- 
monies with  majesty  and  beauty.  It  anchors  our  faith  by  its  iteration, 
impresses  the  indifferent  or  forgetful  mind,  breathes  upon  our  devo- 
tions the  sanctity  of  music  and  poetry,  attracts  the  unthinking,  turns 
thoughtlessness  into  attention.  Beautiful  symbols  summon  the  un- 
seen to  communicate  with  the  actual,  stirs  the  imagination,  and 
refines  the  feelings.  Such  are  the  uses  of  ritual,  and  its  gracious 
offices  should  be  welcomed,  not  spurned.  The  church  that  is  to-day 
the  strongest,  the  Roman  Catholic,  is  the  most  ritualistic,  while  that 
one  which  endeavored  to  discard  all  forms  in  worship,  the  Quakers  or 
Friends,  is  fast  dying  out. 

The  social  demand  of  fraternal  and  secret  societies  in  this  time 
has  grown  beyond  the  ordinary  man's  ability  to  meet.  There  must  be 
some  other  inducement  than  the  mere  routine  of  business.  Hence  the 
attraction  of  a  ritual  must  be  added  to  draw  him  to  the  sessions. 
Literary  exercises  are  desirable,  but  experiment  has  proven  that  for 
general  lodge  purposes  an  interesting  program  of  sufficient  merit  is 
difficult  to  maintain  for  any  length  of  time,  and  in  some  memberships 
impossible.  The  same  effort  put  forth  to  render  impressive  a  ritual, 
to  keep  it  free  from  errors  that  mar,  to  develop  its  literary  beauty  and 
adorn  its  services  with  song,  in  fact,  to  give  spirit  and  character,  im- 
pressiveness  and  beauty  to  every  part  of  the  ceremonial,  will  have  a 
better  effect  on  the  attendance  than  a  literary  effort  which  involves 
far  more  effort,  and  soon  becomes  spasmodic  and  irregular.  I  have 
rarely  sat  in  a  lodge-room  of  inattentive  or  listless  members  when  the 


xxii 


Selected  Literature. 


ritual  was  properly  performed.  To  this  end,  therefore,  I  commend 
those  who  object  to  a  ritual  as  dull  from  iteration  or  cumbersome 
from  inability  to  secure  proper  rehearsals.  I  admit  the  difficulty,  but 
fail  to  find  a  suggested  substitute  which  involves  less. 

In  a  paper  prepared  recently  and  read  before  the  Monongahela 
district  convention,  Royal  Arcanum,  Past  Grand  Regent  Lathy,  treat- 
ing the  subject,  said : 

I  do  not  know  of  any  order  which  has  succeeded  without  a  ritual, 
secret  or  otherwise  ;  in  fact  the  rule  has  been,  the  better  the  ritual,  or 
rather  the  better  the  ritualistic  work  is  performed,  the  more  success- 
ful the  society.  The  superiority  of  our  organizations  over  what 
"might  be  termed  the  business  life  insurance  concerns  lies  in  the  fact 
that  we  utilize  the  gregarious  tendencies  of  human  nature  to  herd 
together.  But  men,  though  gregarious,  are  not  ruminant,  and  when 
herding  they  must  have  something  more  to  do  than  merely  to  look  at 
or  rub  against  each  other.  The  brain  must  be  occupied,  the  mind 
diverted,  so  that  the  ordinary  cares  of  life  may  be  for  the  time  for- 
gotten. There  must  be  something  to  do  at  each  meeting,  and  the  use 
of  a  ritual  not  only  insures  the  doing  of  it,  but  the  doing  of  it  decently 
and  in  order.  Whenever  men  meet  regularly  some  forms  must  be 
adopted  to  govern  the  proceedings. 

The  main  object  of  any  deliberations  held  on  this  subject  will 
hardly  be  whether  a  ritual  is  needed,  but  rather  how  may  each 
society  here  represented  obtain  a  better  ritual,  or  the  best  ritual  ? 

It  is  easy  to  criticise ;  my  experience  leads  me  to  the  conclusion 
that  it  is  easier  to  tear  down  than  to  build  up.  "The  boys  on  the 
fence  can  always  play  better  ball  than  the  ones  in  the  field  until  they 
get  down  and  try  it,"  as  Brother  Lathy  says,  and  if  some  of  the 
critics  would  try  their  hands  at  a.  perfect  ritual,  perhaps  they  would 
see  the  difference. 

A  good  ritual  may  be  outlined  as  follows : 

First.      It  mu3t  be  short. 
Second.    It  must  be  impressive. 
Third.    It  must  be  decorous. 

Fourth.    It  must  be  sprightly,  and  if  possible  musical. 

Fifth.  It  should  have  marching  movements  and  responsive  read- 
ings which  will  embrace  the  entire  membership. 

Sixth.  The  candidate  should  be  instructed  in  the  work  as  he  ad- 
vances, and  not  be  compelled  to  stand  and  listen  to  a  long  lecture  after 
the  ceremony  is  really  over.    Just  at  this  point  most  rituals  fail. 

Seventh.  The  candidate  should  be  warmly  welcomed  by  all  the 
members  present  as  a  part  of  the  ceremony. 

Eighth.    The  parts  should  be  memorized 

Let  me  here  remark  that  the  ritual  may  be  the  best  that  wisdom 
can  inspire  or  the  brightest  genius  conceive,  unless  the  officers  do 
their  parts  well  it  will  fail  to  satisfy. 


Selected  Literature. 


xxiii 


If  it  must  be  read  from  books,  let  it  be  carefully  read  and  properly 
rendered. 

Rattled  off  in  the  style  all  too  common,  the  evident  object  being  to 
g-et  through,  it  becomes  nonsense  to  the  candidate,  and  its  lesson  is 
lost. 

An  indifferent  ceremony  well  rendered  is  better  than  an  excellent 
one  indifferently  done. 

The  chief  object  of  an  initiatory  ceremony,  however,  must  be  kept 
constantly  in  mind,  and  even  at  the  risk  of  being  tiresome,  I  will  re- 
iterate : 

First.  It  must  be  framed  and  must  be  rehearsed  so  as  to  create  in 
the  mind  of  the  applicant  at  the  very  threshold  of  his  membership  a 
favorable  impression  of  the  institution  with  which  he  is  allying  him- 
self ;  it  must  win  his  admiration  and  respect. 

Second.  The  ceremony  must  be  well  performed.  Lodge  meetings 
will  receive  increasing  attention  from  impressive  and  well-recited 
lessons. 

Third.  Members  of  fraternal  benefit  societies  will  become  im- 
pressed by  well-delivered  lectures  —  such  as  abound  in  every  ritual  — 
on  the  nobility  and  sacredness  of  their  unselfish  mission.  The  mere 
business  features  become  subordinate,  and  the  brothers  will  learn  to 
appreciate  that  charity  which  is  the  broad  foundation  stone,  and  that 
fraternity  which  is  the  bulwark  of  every  protective  assessment  associa- 
tion. In  no  method  can  we  teach  these  great  truths  or  keep  them  so 
constantly  in  view,  as  by  frequently  rendering  with  care  and  fidelity 
the  brief  but  impressive  and  harmonious  lessons  of  the  book  of  the 
ritual. 

Fourth.  The  ritual  to  be  effective  must  be  dignified,  elevating,  and 
instructive.  The  work  of  the  ritual  must  not  be  too  broad,  it  must 
not  degenerate  into  anything  of  a  farcical  nature,  calculated  to  give 
offense,  but  it  should  be  made  entertaining.  It  must  not  be  a  roaring 
farce  like  the  Sons  of  Malta,  but  be  a  beautiful,  useful,  uniform,  har- 
monious, and  impressive  ceremony. 

Fifth.  Every  ritual  should  be  memorized.  If  too  long  for  that,  it 
must  be  cut  down.  The  reasons  for  this  need  not  be  urged  before  this 
intelligent  assembly.  They  are  apparent,  cogent,  and  conclusive. 
No  ritualistic  ceremony,  however  perfect  it  may  be,  can  be  impres- 
sive and  give  satisfaction,  if  it  be  read  to  the  candidate.  The  most 
brilliant  and  attractive  order  the  world  has  ever  known  has  become 
illustrious  through  its  ritualistic  achievements,  which  would  be  tame, 
flat,  stale  and  unprofitable  if  rendered  from  books  by  Masters  and 
Wardens.  The  object  of  an  initiation  is  to  impress  upon  a  candidate 
the  characteristics  of  an  order,  and  make  them  real  to  him.  Who 
that  has  seen  the  three  burning  tapers,  or  passed  under  the  living 
arch,  or  sat  in  meditation  before  mortality,  will  ever  forget  the  lessons 
then  impressed  in  lectures  recited,  not  read  to  him. 


-xxiv 


Selected  Literature. 


Sixth.  The  ritual  must  not  be  too  long.  We,  brethren,  are  for  the 
most  part  actively  engaged  in  business,  and  late  hours  must  be 
avoided  if  the  lodge  meetings  are  to  be  made  attractive.  Twenty  min- 
utes is  long  enough  in  which  to  initiate  a  candidate,  under  ordinary 
circumstances ;  and  ceremonies  which  at  any  time  require  more  than 
half  an  hour  should  be  cut  down.  Preparation  should  be  made  before- 
haad,  certain  officers  have  charge  of  the  paraphernalia,  and  when  an 
initiation  is  to  occur  should  have  all  the  material  conveniently  at 
hand,  so  that  no  time  be  wasted  in  its  preparation.  When  the  time 
comes  push  the  work  along  vigorously  and  without  delay.  Do  not 
suborn  deliberation  to  haste,  but  see  that  each  moment  is  occupied. 

Objection  is  made  to  the  ceremonials  of  the  orders  as  puerile.  In- 
telligent men  say  their  ears  are  vexed  with  badly  pronounced  English 
and  attempts  at  the  dramatic  which  are  only  ludicrous. 

I  might  venture  to  say  that  no  man  has  mingled  much  in  the 
orders  who  has  not,  at  times,  been  humiliated  in  this  way.  He  feels 
self-abased  by  the  illiteracy  of  officials  who  stumble  over  good  English, 
while  the  tragic  or  dramatic  parts  of  the  ceremony,  intended  to  bo  en- 
acted so  as  to  create  an  impression  for  good,  are  read  from  a  book  or 
slowly  deciphered  from  a  card  which,  by  reason  of  finger  and  pencil 
marks,  is  almost  unreadable.  The  ideal  of  the  author  of  the  ritual  is 
burlesqued,  and  the  whole  performance  is  both  a  travesty  on  the  dra- 
matic and  a  grotesque  imitation  of  an  intended  solemnity.  It  is  bathos 
instead  of  pathos. 

Does  this  argue  against  a  true  ritual?  Does  it  follow  because  a 
country  church  service  falls  far  short  of  the  grand  cathedral  worship 
that  the  one  must  be  condemned  ?  Men  are  impressed  by  true  ritual. 
The  church  service  under  vaulted  dome,  surrounded  by  the  acces- 
sories of  art,  the  chants  accompanied  by  grand  organ  effects  which 
roll  through  vaulted  roofs,  the  modulated  tones  of  a  good  reader,  re- 
sponses from  a  well-trained  choir,  the  solemn  lights,  the  rich  vest- 
ments, the  orderly  worshippers,  the  bowed  heads.  Breathes  there  a 
man,  be  he  Catholic  or  Protestant,  churchman  or  heretic,  who  is  not 
moved  by  such  concord  ? 

So,  also,  who  has  not  seen  the  noisy  audience  of  an  opera  house 
hushed  to  stillness  at  the  prayer  scene  in  the  Pirates  of  Penzance,  or 
the  cathedral  scene  in  the  Huguenots  ?  Who  has  not  felt  heart 
throbs  of  sympathy  as  Knights  Templar  under  an  arch  of  steel  in 
beautiful  ritual  laid  to  rest  one  of  their  fraters  ? 

The  fraternal  ritual  is  a  bond  which  will  cement.  Its  universality 
is  its  boast ;  it  knows  no  state  lines,  it  is  national.  At  its  altar  men 
of  all  religions  may  kneel ;  to  its  creed  disciples  of  every  faith  may 
subscribe. 

The  use  of  rites  and  symbols  is  an  instructive  one.  It  belongs  to 
our  humanity.  Whether  found  in  the  temples  of  Greece  or  in  the 
groves  of  Rome,  the  caves  of  India,  or  amid  the  rocks  of  Gaul,  by  the 
oaks  of  Britain,  in  the  cathedrals  of  Europe,  or  the  temples  of  Mexico, 


Selected  Literature. 


XXV 


or  in  the  lodg-e-rooms  of  the  nineteenth  century,  ritualism  has 
elevated  the  tone  of  mankind,  strengthened  the  social  feelings,  refined 
and  extended  the  amenities  and  charities  of  life,  softened  the  bitter- 
ness of  war;  it  has  proven  a  potent  influence  in  extending,  elevating, 
and  refining  civilization,  and  in  advancing  the  moral,  intellectual,  and 
religious  character  of  mankind. 

This  being  its  history  in  the  past,  who  will  gainsay  its  future  V 
Who  shall  deny  to  the  grandest  charity  ever  conceived  in  the  hearts 
of  men,  this  wonderful  product  of  nineteenth  century  civilization,  the 
beneficial  plan  of  co-operative  and  voluntary  mutual  assessment  in- 
surance, the  benefits  of  so  powerful  an  auxiliary,  that  mystic  tie  which 
binds  together  so  many  men  in  an  effort  to  promote  the  happiness  of 
the  human  race  ?  " 


Woodcraft, 


The  following  is  the  address  delivered  by  Judge  C.  J.  Lindly,  of 
Greenville,  Illinois,  at  the  entertainment  given  by  Victory  Camp, 
No.  452,  February  22d,  1898  : 

It  was  said  that  Plato  remonstrated  with  his  friend  Archytas  be- 
cause he  framed  machines  for  useful  purposes  on  mathematical  prin- 
ciples; that  Archimedes  apologized  for  a  supposed  perversion  of 
science  for  those  inventions  that  were  the  wonder  and  admiration  of 
after  ages.  The  philosophers  of  that  age  taught  the  use  of  mathe- 
matics for  the  development  and  discipline  of  the  mind,  but  it  was 
thought  improper  to  apply  it  to  useful  inventions  that  would  serve  to 
make  easier  life's  burdens,  or  that  would  in  any  way  tend  to  lift  them 
from  the  "stooping  shoulders  of  the  world's  weary  workers."  In  the 
art  of  healing  they  thought  it  wrong  to  prolong  life  by  the  aid  of 
medical  science.  In  many  respects  the  civilization  of  the  past  may 
have  been  abreast  or  even  excelled  us,  as  in  "poetry,  eloquence,  and 
philosophy,  in  both  brilliant  rhetoric  and  subtle  logic, "  but  the  crown- 
ing distinction  of  our  civilization  is  the  practical  application  of  all 
progress  in  knowledge  and  science  to  the  convenience  of  man,  and  for 
the  comfort  and  happiness  of  the  human  race. 

Thus  mathematics  has  not  only  been  used  to  develop  the  mind, 
but  to  overcome  the  obstinate  resistance  of  nature,  and  with  science 
to  subjugate  all  material  forces  and  physical  laws  to  the  mind  and 
purposes  of  man.  As  a  result  of  this  practical  trend,  the  multiplicity 
of  labor-saving  machinery  makes  life's  labors  light,  and  science 
makes  the  night  as  light  as  day.  The  wonderful  relief  and  restora- 
tions made  by  medical  science  of  to-day  would  have  been  considered  a 
miracle  a  century  ago.  This  idea  of  being  practical  has  been  carried 
into  our  lives,  our  homes,  our  thoughts,  and  has  lengthened  the  life 


xxvi 


Selected  Literature. 


of  man.  This  advancement  of  humanity  has  been  made  gradually, 
and  is  like  the  incoming  tide  of  the  ocean — "the  undertow  may  leave 
bare  the  strand,  but  each  succeeding  wave  mounts  a  little  higher  and 
makes  its  mark  upon  the  shore." 

As  a  result  of  the  activity  of  the  mind,  the  Divinity  within  us, 
progress  is  stamped  upon  everything,  and  with  this  advancement 
comes  practical  lessons  that  teach  us  how  to  give  vigor  to  steps  and 
something  more  than  tiresome  aim  in  life,  and  warns  us  that  in  this 
world  we  should  be  something  more  than  an  echo.  This  spirit  grasps 
the  good  of  all  ages  from  the  history  of  the  past,  applies  it  to  the 
necessities  of  the  present,  and  thus  transformed  by  the  practical 
modern  mind,  and  taken  in  conjunction  with  the  progress  of  mental 
science  and  the  practical  tendencies  of  the  age,  it  becomes  the  founda- 
tion of  our  present  advanced  civilization ;  thus  none  of  the  good  is 
lost,  for  the  coin  of  the  past  is  reminted,  and  comes  forth  "bearing 
the  image  and  superscription  of  a  fairer  future  and  a  diviner  destiny." 

The  basis  of  human  actions  of  this  day  is  its  methodic  philosophy 
and  wisely-directed  efforts ;  they  rest  not  upon  the  wild,  impetuous, 
unregenerated  impulses  of  the  past.  Among  the  many  offsprings  of 
this  practical  age  are  the  fraternal  organizations  which  fill  our  land 
from  shore  to  shore,  that  have  done  so  much  under  "  the  white  banner 
of  charity  "  to  relieve  the  distressed  and  to  ameliorate  the  sufferings 
of  humanity ;  and  in  this  great  and  grand  northwest,  of  which  our 
state  forms  an  important  part,  the  most  conspicuous  fraternal  bene- 
ficial society  is  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America,  the  local  members 
of  which  have  gathered  here  to-night  with  their  wives,  daughters, 
friends,  and  sweethearts  to  pass  a  pleasant  social  evening,  and  to 
gather  around  the  banquet  board  of  the  Woodmen  of  this  forest. 

Woodcraft  bears  the  stamp  of  the  age.  It  is  practical  because  it  is 
popular,  progressive,  and  equitable ;  because  its  membership  is  con- 
fined to  the  states  of  Illinois,  Iowa,  Wisconsin,  Kansas,  Nebraska, 
Minnesota,  Michigan,  the  two  Dakotas,  Colorado,  and  Missouri,  ex- 
cept the  cities  of  Chicago,  Milwaukee,  Detroit,  and  St.  Louis,  a  garden 
spot  that  is  the  healthiest  on  earth,  a  territory  across  which  no  epi- 
demic has  ever  been  able  to  sweep  ;  practical,  because  it  does  not 
include  the  great  cities  within  its  territory,  because  it  excludes  from 
membership  the  vicious  and  depraved,  because  those  engaged  in 
hazardous  occupations  can  not  become  members,  because  sobriety  and 
honesty  are  demanded  of  every  Neighbor ;  practical,  because  its 
membership  is  made  up  of  young  and  progressive  men,  because  the 
best  citizens  of  the  states  within  its  territory  are  promoters  of  Wood- 
craft, because  it  is  not  a  stock  company,  managed  for  the  benefit  of 
a  few,  because  it  has  a  representative  government  in  which  the  mem- 
bers are  the  sovereign  power  and  have  absolute  control.  Its  represen- 
tatives meet  once  every  two  years  to  consider  plans,  to  tabulate,  to 
analyze,  to  compare,  to  remodel,  to  perfect,  to  equalize  burdens,  and 
to  elect  its  officers.    It  is  practical,  because  it  has  the  cream  of  terri- 


Selected  Literature. 


xxvii 


tory  and  character  of  membership ;  because  the  only  warfare  it  wages 
is  for  the  relief  of  its  members  living  and  the  widows  and  orphans  of 
its  members  dead,  and  not  to  promote  selfish,  temporal  interests  ;  be- 
cause it  teaches  friendship  and  morality  and  is  a  place  where  men  can 
meet  as  brothers  and  "heart  beats  true  to  heart ;  "  because,  in  short, 
its  foundation-stone  is  practical  fraternity,  and  it  enables  us  to  make 
provision  while  living  for  the  contingency  of  death.  It  is  eminently 
practical  and  cannot  fail,  because  it  meets  so  perfectly  the  common 
wants  of  a  common  people. 

We  are  making  this  an  age  of  reflection  as  well  as  an  age  of 
reason.  As  the  solid  strata  that  lie  unseen  beneath  the  surface  give 
shape  and  contour  and  direction  to  the  lofty  mountain  range,  so  there 
is  a  motive  underlying  our  actions  that  prompts  every  prudent  man 
at  all  times  and  under  all  circumstances  to  consider  well  the  future 
of  those  dependent  upon  him  after  he  has  passed  over  the  "dark 
river  called  death."  Woodcraft  answers  this  purpose,  and  by  small 
monthly  payments,  the  lowest  minimum  assessments  that  are  possible, 
it  guarantees  at  death  a  specific  sum.  Some  men  consider  this  matter 
lightly,  as  the  fitful  shadows  play  upon  the  waters,  coming  and  going 
with  the  "  drift  of  the  changing  clouds,"  so  they  consider  only  for  a 
moment  this  important  question  when  the  angel  of  death  has  rung 
down  the  curtain  upon  the  "  stage  of  another  human  life."  We  are  too 
apt  to  view  death  as  something  far  in  the  future.  As  one  standing  on 
the  seashore  watches  the  distant  snowy  sail  that  glides  silently  along 
the  horizon  afar  off,  beautiful,  unknown,  so  to  us  sails  the  ship  of  life, 
and  only  He  who  holds  in  His  hands  our  destiny  knows  the  hour  of 
the  call.  Hope,  the  twin  sister  of  immortality,  is  ours  for  the  present, 
but  disappointments  are  the  lessons  of  life  and  none  fail  to  learn  them, 
for  life  is  filled  with  "  scarlet  buds  and  sombre  blossoms." 

This  day  is  the  anniversary  of  the  birth  of  the  father  of  our 
country  ;  his  patriotism  is  like  a  beacon  light  leading  on  the  brave 
heroes  and  illuminating  the  long  struggle  for  liberty,  and  its  light 
faded  not  till  the  prize  was  won,  and  even  now  it  shines  brightly,  and 
will  shine  on  forever.  From  the  final  victory  at  Yorktown,  this 
nation  has  "  stood  under  the  blue  and  the  stars,  nature's  flag,  sublime 
and  free."  In  his  life  three  traits  were  most  prominent:  courage, 
purpose,  and  persistency,  and  these  having  been  so  deeply  and  per- 
manently planted  in  the  hearts  of  our  people,  they  have  enabled  them 
to  pass  more  rapidly  the  milestones  of  civilization  than  any  other 
people.  It  is  in  the  early  period  of  a  nation's  existence,  the  time  of 
its  origin  and  growth,  of  weakness  and  danger,  that  love  of  country 
seems  most  strongly  developed  ;  it  is  then  that  sacrifices  are  cheer- 
fully made,  dangers  and  toil  readily  met,  and  life  is  more  freely  given  ; 
it  was  ever  so  at  the  birth  of  this  nation,  whose  foundation  could  have 
been  in  no  other  way  laid,  and  has  secured  to  us  liberty  and  freedom. 
Yet  how  much  stronger  should  be  our  love  of  country  when  the  same 
objects  demand  our  vigilance,  when  added  to  these  are  all  the  sacred 


xxviii 


Selected  Literature. 


memories  this  day  recalls,  when  every  lofty  mountain,  every  plain  and 
valley,  every  hill  and  dale,  every  stream  and  majestic  river,  every 
craggy  cliff  and  frowning  headland  stands  as  objects  made  sacred  to 
the  memory  of  the  past,  and  as  altars  on  which  our  ancestors  have 
offered  their  blood  as  a  sacrifice  for  liberty.  This  is  a  subject  on 
which  we  love  to  dwell,  but  time  forbids. 

In  the  days  of  Washington,  the  territory  that  is  now  the  home  of 
Woodcraft  was  unclaimed  from  nature  ;  the  rapid  transformation  of 
this  vast  domain  into  peaceful  homes  since  civilization  has  here 
"crowned  nature  with  its  glory"  would  fill  volumes;  yet  no  more 
rapid  has  been  this  transformation  than  has  been  the  growth  and  de- 
velopment of  our  orga.nization,  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America. 
And  we  are  proud  to  note  that  its  most  rapid  growth  and  greatest 
success  has  been  under  the  administration  of  our  honored  citizen  and 
Neighbor,  W.  A.  Northcott,  who  is  a  member  of  this  Camp  and  Head 
Consul  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America. 

Modern  !  I  like  that  word.  It  brings  with  it  a  world  of  meaning. 
It  represents  all  the  advancement  of  the  past  and  present.  It  has 
taught  man  the  greatness  of  mind  and  placed  it  above  genius.  The 
wonderful  inventions  that  surround  us,  the  network  of  railroads,  the 
electric  highways  in  our  cities,  the  cable,  the  telegraph,  the  telephone, 
the  phonograph,  the  electric  spark  that  illumines  our  cities,  the  dis- 
coveries in  science,  the  complicated  inventions  of  the  hour,  the  won- 
derful telescope,  through  which  none  can  look  without  a  feeling  of 
awe,  as  it  seems  to  lift  us  up  and  bear  us  away  into  the  unknown  and 
infinite,  revealing  to  us  what  it  would  almost  seem  had  not  been  in- 
tended for  human  eye  to  behold.  These  are  marvelous  to  contemplate, 
yet  v/e  are  now  taught  that  there  is  one  thing  more  wonderful  than 
all  these  inventions  and  discoveries,  and  that  is  the  mind  that  con- 
trived them.  One  thing  is  more  inspiring  than  the  stars,  and  that  is 
the  mind  that  discovers  their  hidden  laws  and  unlocks  their  com- 
plicated movements.  It  is  this  higher  part  of  man  that  Woodcraft 
around  its  camp-fires  seeks  to  elevate,  to  brighten,  and  ennoble ;  and 
while  it  inspires  us  with  hope,  it  teaches  us  charity  "that  extends 
beyond  the  grave."  Modern  !  What  a  world  of  victories  that  word 
represents,  of  mind  over  matter,  of  education  over  ignorance,  of 
liberty  over  tyranny,  of  freedom  over  oppression,  of  religion  over 
idolatry,  of  Christianity  over  superstition,  of  charity  over  selfishness 
and  greed,  of  man  over  himself.  How  properly  has  it  been  applied  to 
Woodcraft ;  for  this  is  one  of  the  modern  societies  that  has  brought 
life  insurance  within  the  reach  of  all,  the  rich  and  poor  alike.  As 
the  seven  prismatic  colors  of  the  rainbow  contain  within  themselves 
the  whole  substance  of  light,  so  this  word  "  modern  "  represents  the 
substance  or  the  climax  of  all  progress  made  by  man.  It  calls  to  our 
mind  the  vast  changes  made  and  the  objects  to  be  attained  in  the  in- 
itiation of  a  candidate  into  secret  orders.  How  our  blood  chills  when 
wo  review  the  initiation  into  the  ancient  mysteries,  which  took  place 


Selected  Literature. 


xxix 


in  groves  and  caves  ;  how  the  candidate  was  thrust  into  the  yawning- 
mouth  of  the  cave,  surrounded  by  a  black  and  gloomy  lake ;  the 
ground  trembled  and  rumbled  beneath  his  feet ;  the  mountain  tops 
quaked,  ?ind  the  dogs  made  hideous  the  woods  with  their  howls,  after 
which  they  advanced  in  darkness  through  the  desolate  abode  of  Pluto. 
After  passing  for  three  or  four  days  from  one  horrid  representation  to 
another,  he  was  thrown  into  the  river  Styx,  and  left  to  his  own  fate. 
The  candidate  was  then  tortured  by  sword  and  fire,  was  passed 
through  flame  and  inhuman  tortures  and  fatigue,  and  often  sank  in 
despair.  When  we  think  of  the  applicants  for  the  Pythagorean 
mysteries,  who  being  subjected  first  to  three  years  abstinence  from  all 
food  and  drink,  save  barely  enough  to  sustain  life,  next  they  were 
sentenced  to  three  years  silence,  to  teach  them  humility  (for  this 
reason,  I  suppose,  no  woman  ever  applied);  and  at  last  being  deprived 
of  their  property,  and  only  permitted  to  hear  the  lectures  of  Pytha- 
goras from  behind  the  screens.  Or  the  ancient  initiation  into  the 
Mexican  mysteries;  how  the  candidate  beheld  the  sacrifice  of  his  fel- 
lowmen  upon  the  altars  made  to  the  gods,  and  was  then  forced  into 
the  cave  of  initiation,  filled  with  the  shrieks  of  despair  bursting  from 
the  lips  of  those  about  to  be  made  victims  to  minister  to  the  gods,  • 
with  the  groans  of  the  dying,  while  the  priests  offered  the  victims  one 
by  one.  The  candidate  passed  from  one  terrible  scene  to  another,  as 
he  waded  through  human  blood,  now  warm  and  now  cold,  until  he 
reached  the  place  where  he  was  forced  up  many  feet  and  thrown  head- 
long to  the  thousands  below,  who,  with  their  victorious  shouts,  greeted 
the  new-born  soul.  How  we  are  elevated  in  the  initiation  of  Wood- 
craft; every  act  performed,  every  sentence  uttered,  is  intended  to 
elevate  man  and  make  him  better ;  to  give  him  a  higher  conception  of 
his  duties  to  his  fellowman,  and  make  him  nobler  ;  to  teach  him  fra- 
ternity and  charity,  thus  bringing  him  nearer  the  Divine. 

As  the  colors  of  the  spectrum,  though  of  varied  brilliancy  and  in- 
tensity, when  blended  produce  a  clear,  unsullied  white,  so  the  feelings 
of  the  heart,  though  of  varied  depth  and  power,  are  limited  and  har- 
monized by  the  medium  of  Woodcraft,  and  brotherly  love  and  charity 
are  the  characteristics  developed.  Within  the  walls  of  the  Camp  the 
inquiring  spirit  finds  meet  companions.  He  may  enter  Woodcraft 
fretted  with  worldly  disappointments,  bowed  down  with  misfortune,  or 
oppressed  with  care  ;  here  he  listens  to  words  of  truth  and  kindness, 
which  meet  him  at  every  step.  A  new  chord  is  touched,  and  as  it 
thrills  through  his  frame  he  begins  to  feel  "how  good  and  pleasant  a 
thing  it  is  for  brothers  to  dwell  together  in  unity." 

Here  he  is  taught  that  friendship  is  more  than  a  name.  What  a 
charm  there  is  in  friendship;  how  the  mind  turns  to  home,  where  it 
is  seen  in  its  beauty  and  intensity.  "The  wife's  devotion  has  ever 
been  the  theme  of  the  poet's  song  and  minstrel  strain,  and  filial  love 
has  been  promised  a  blessing  in  its  fulfillment."  It  was  seen  at  the 
^ross,  when,  amid  revelings  and  reproaches,  the  faithful  disciples 


XXX 


Selected  Literature. 


stood  by  and  witnessed  the  last  agony.  It  guided  the  lone  woman  at 
early  dawn  to  the  sepulchre  to  see  where  they  had  laid  her  Friend  and 
Master.  It  is  the  basis  of  Woodcraft.  "  It  is  the  golden  thread  which 
runs  through  the  web  of  life,  imparting  strength  and  beauty."  By  the 
camp-fire  we  are  taught  to  think  well  of  our  neighbor,  and  this  is  the 
first  step  toward  seeking  to  do  him  good.  We  learn  to  regard  him  as  one 
who  has  claims  upon  our  sympathy  and  regard.  Woodcraft  not  only 
teaches  the  higher  qualities  so  necessary  to  the  higher  man,  but 
through  its  plan  of  insurance  it  secures  to  the  family  of  the  deceased 
a  certain  sum  of  money ;  it  thus  protects  our  loved  ones,  and  our  af- 
fection for  them  is  the  foundation  of  our  social  virtue.  As  the  roads 
are  paths  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain  all  leading  to  the  summit,  so 
every  effort  of  life  is  in  the  interest  of  those  bound  to  us  by  the  ties 
of  home.  We  labor  at  all  times  to  leave  for  them  a  competency, 
something  to  educate  the  children,  and  Woodcraft  offers  the  best  op- 
portunity to  do  this,  imposing  no  heavy  burdens  upon  its  members. 

Domestic  affections  are  found  alike  in  the  hovel  and  the  mansion ;  in 
the  ignorant  and  wise,  in  the  weak  and  the  strong  ;  its  presence 
blesses  the  home  of  all.  Poets  have  known  this,  painters  have  seized 
upon  it,  critics  have  pointed  it  out  in  the  best  ideal  delineations, 
both  of  ancient  and  modern  times.  It  brightens  the  home  of  the  poor 
and  the  weak,  it  softens  the  gloomy  and  otherwise  forbidding  char- 
acter of  the  stern  Achilles ;  it  invests  with  superior  beauty  and  almost 
sacredness  "the  aged  Priam,  suing  for  the  dead  body  of  Hector." 
It  constitutes  one  of  the  brightest  ornaments  with  which  Virgil  knew 
"how  to  adorn  the  character  of  the  hero  of  the  ^neid."  Audit 
stood  forth  in  the  affections  of  Napoleon  for  his  son,  and  in  the  grief 
of  Cromwell  for  the  death  of  his  daughter,  as  a  "gentle  star  glitters 
on  the  brow  of  night." 

It  was  said  that  the  Egyptians,  not  being  able  to  calculate  the 
movements  of  the  heavenly  bodies,  entertained  fears  at  each  change 
or  disappearance  of  the  moon  from  the  earth  that  she  would  not 
again  return,  hence  so  overjoyed  were  they  on  the  appearance  of  the 
new  moon  that  they  instituted  a  festival,  and  men  were  selected  to 
repair  to  the  mountain  tops  to  discover  the  first  appearance  of  the 
Hecate,  and  then  with  all  speed  to  convey  the  glad  tidings  to  the 
people,  on  arrival  of  which  the  festival  commenced ;  and  to  the  in- 
vited guests  of  this  Camp  to-night,  I  desire  to  say  the  new  moon  is 
here,  and  the  feast  is  prepared,  and  the  tidings  are  borne  to  us  through 
eighty  thousand  Woodmen  that  the  wisest  thing  you  can  do  is  to 
3oin  us  in  the  support  of  Woodcraft. 


Selected  Literature. 


xxxi 


Tribute  to  the  Bead. 


The  following  is  an  extract  from  some  of  the  addresses  delivered 
at  the  memorial  exercises,  Springfield,  Illinois,  June,  1893 : 

It  has  been  one  year  since  I  gathered  with  you  here  in  this  beauti- 
ful cemetery,  beneath  the  fraternal  banners  of  Woodcraft,  and  in  the 
shadow  of  the  monument  that  marks  the  last  resting-place  of  the  im- 
mortal Lincoln.  During  that  year  thirty  thousand  new  men  have 
joined  our  ranks.  Our  order  has  drawn  thirty  thousand  more  homes 
within  its  protection.  Fifty  million  dollars  of  insurance  has  been 
written.  During  the  last  year  nearly  $1,000,000  has  been  paid  to  the 
families  of  deceased  neighbors.  This  sum  has  gone  to  make  desolate 
places  glad  ;  it  has  gone  to  wipe  the  tear  from  the  cheek  of  the  widow ; 
it  has  gone  to  feed  and  clothe  little  children  and  send  them  to  school. 
During  the  past  year  eighty  thousand  Woodmen  have  been  sowing  the 
seeds  of  fraternity  and  charity  —  a  charity  that  shines  as  brightly  in 
this  age  of  selfishness  as  do  the  stars  on  the  dark  mantle  of  night. 

Nowhere  else  in  the  ten  states  which  comprise  the  jurisdiction  of 
Woodcraft  could  such  a  scene  be  presented  as  we  have  here  to-day. 
Twelve  hundred  Woodmen  with  bright  banners  and  martial  music, 
a  vast  military  pageant,  marches  to  prayer.  The  winds  stir  the  folds 
of  dark-draped  mourning  flags.  Beautiful  flowers,  emblems  of  im- 
mortality, are  placed  with  loving  hands  upon  the  graves  of  our  de- 
parted neighbors.  Springfield,  the  first  city  in  all  the  world  in 
Woodcraft,  has  to-day  lifted  that  white  banner  of  charity  a  little 
higher  than  it  has  ever  been  lifted  before.  This  day's  exercises  not 
only  inspires  us  who  take  part,  put  places  Woodcraft  higher  in  the 
estimation  of  the  public.    It  is  an  object  lesson  in  fraternity. 

Mr.  Northcott  spoke  at  length  on  the  character  of  the  great  north- 
west, in  which  this  order  was  planted,  and  said :  Woodcraft  is  the 
great  champion  of  home.  The  strength  of  a  nation  is  not  in  its  army 
and  navy,  but  in  the  number  of  homes  in  its  midst.  Not  from  its  uni- 
versities, whose  ambitious  spires  kiss  the  sky,  but  from  the  little 
school  house  in  the  valleys  and  on  the  hills.  Not  from  the  gold  locked 
in  vaults,  but  from  the  number  of  its  people  who  own  their  own 
homes  and  are  able  to  have  three  square  meals  a  day,  and  are  able  to 
send  their  children  to  school  every  school-day  in  the  year.  This  was 
the  condition  of  this  great  northwest. — Head  Consul  Northcott. 


The  value  of  this  beautiful  exercise  is  to  the  living,  and  not  to  the 
dead.  Occasions  like  this  furnish  time  and  opportunity  for  thought 
and  reflection.  They  admonish  us  of  the  fleetness  of  time,  of  the 
transitory  state  of  all  things  mortal,  and  of  the  certainty  of  death. 
These  beautiful  flowers  with  which  we  decorate  the  graves  of  our  de- 
ceased brethren  are  but  the  precursors  of  seed  which,  when  buried  in 


xxxii 


Selected  Literature. 


the  earth,  come  forth  in  new  life  and  fresh  beauty  ;  so  we  are  led  to 
hope  that  our  buried  brothers  are  not  dead,  but  will,  in  the  wise 
economy  of  nature  and  God,  come  forth  into  new  and  brighter  life  in 
the  great  beyond.  A  great  philosopher  hath  said  that  it  is  incon- 
sistent with  all  we  know  of  nature  and  her  laws  that  anything  should 
perish  and  be  lost  to  the  universe ;  and  how  much  more  so,  he  says, 
of  man,  aye,  of  that  part  of  man  which  represents  his  limitless  intel- 
lectual capacities,  his  ambitions,  his  loves,  his  hopes,  and  his  long- 
ings. How  inconsistent  with  any  conceivable  purpose  in  his  creation 
is  the  idea  that  all  these  should  return  to  dead  earth  and  forever  cease 
to  be. 

Let  these  exercises  stimulate  us  not  only  to  hope  for  the  life  be- 
yond, but  to  a  greater  zeal  in  the  discharge  of  our  helpful  duties  toward 
each  other  while  time  and  opportunity  lasts  with  us.  The  fraternity 
to  which  we  belong,  and  of  which  we  are  so  justly  proud,  is  one  of 
the  God-given  agencies  of  this  splendid  civilization  in  which  it  is  our 
blessed  lot  to  live.  When  we  review  the  history  of  the  human  family 
in  all  the  preceding  ages,  how  truly  we  can  say,  and  how  forcibly  we 
can  feel,  that  our  lines  have  indeed  fallen  in  pleasant  places  —  that 
this  is  a  blessed  day  and  generation  in  which  we  live  and  act  our  part 
in  the  drama  of  human  life  upon  earth.  There  can  be  no  civilization 
without  a  degree  of  co-operation,  and  the  more  perfect  the  co-opera- 
tion, the  higher  and  better  the  state  of  civilization.  Voluntary  fra- 
ternal co-operation  and  its  fruits  are  the  richest  and  ripest  products 
of  civilization.  When  ignorance,  suspicion,  jealousy,  and  human 
greed  are  so  far  overcome  that  universal  co-operation  becomes  pos- 
sible, then  will  be  the  millenium.  Let  us,  brethren,  each  in  his  own 
best  way,  as  well  as  he  can,  do  his  part  day  by  day,  and  implicitly 
trust  the  future  to  the  guiding  hand  of  the  All  Wise.  While  we  are 
yet  a  long  way  off  from  that  perfect  state,  yet  it  is  true,  and  every 
well-informed,  fair-minded  man  knows  it  is  true,  that  the  present  age 
is  in  every  way  better  than  any  age  that  has  preceded  it,  and  all  con- 
ditions indicate  and  give  earnest  hope  that  the  future  will  be  better 
than  the  present. —  Judge  James  A.  Creighton. 


This  place,  the  surroundings,  our  environments,  suggest  a  thought 
of  dissolution  and  death.  But  the  accumulation  of  human  experience 
leads  to  the  inevitable  conclusion  that  this  life  of  ours  is  not  a  whole, 
but  a  fragment ;  that  we  are  nebulous  rather  than  meteoric ;  a 
selected  and  undeveloped  thing,  rather  than  a  developed  and  rejected 
one.  If  this  world  is  incomplete,  there  must  be  a  complete  one.  The 
sorrows,  anguish,  and  pains  of  the  human  being  requires  some  com- 
pensation which  can  be  given  only  in  another  world.  The  devastation 
caused  by  the  battlefield,  the  epidemic,  the  calamities  innumerable  to 
which  we  are  subject,  are  such  that  compensation  could  not  be  given 
in  this  world.    If  in  this  world  the  soul  is  weary,  it  must  find  rest  in 


Selected  Literature. 


xxxiii 


another.  The  consuming-  desire  of  man  is  purity,  and  that  desire 
must  be  satisfied,  but  it  cannot  be  in  this  life.  If  this  world  is  a  fail- 
ure, some  other  must  be  a  success.  Judge  Creighton  has  told  us  that 
an  atom  is  indestructible;  then  the  soul  must  be  of  that  nature,  for  of 
much  more  value  to  preserve.  Scientists  tell  us  that  in  the  early 
morning  of  life  myriads  of  infinitesimal  objects  lived  whose  duration 
of  life  was  for  a  day  only ;  that  in  the  great  laboratory  of  nature,  in 
whose  economy  nothing  is  lost,  the  remains  of  these  objects  have  been 
transformed,  so  that  we  are  given  as  a  result  the  beautiful  marble 
which  marks  the  last  resting-place  of  our  dead.  No,  nothing  is  lost ! 
We  can  see  joy  in  the  midst  of  our  grief,  and  be  solaced  by  the  an- 
ticipation of  the  future. —  Director  J.  W,  White. 


Value  of  An  Order  Paper, 


Nothing  can  be  more  conclusive  in  the  matter  of  proof  as  to  the 
helpfulness  of  an  order  paper  than  that  demonstrated  by  an  analysis 
of  the  late  circular  issued  by  the  Committee  on  Extension  of  the 
Order.  That  we  might  be  positive  upon  this  matter,  we  checked  up 
ail  the  lodges  in  the  jurisdiction  of  Pennsylvania,  and  we  find  the  fol- 
lowing increase  in  the  lodges  wherein  the  Keystone  Workman  circu- 
lates, as  compared  with  those  where  no  copies  are  taken  : 


Not  Taken. 

Taken. 

Increase. 

Increase. 

Total. 

  29 

278 

307 

"  2 

  74 

441 

515 

u  3 

 62 

225 

287 

 24 

360 

384 

Total  

 189 

1304 

1493 

The  totals  show  that  among  the  lodges  that  have  not  taken  the 
Keystone  Workman  only  189  of  an  increase  has  been  had,  while  among 
the  lodges  where  the  paper  circulates  the  increase  has  been  1,304. 
When  it  is  further  considered  that  only  a  little  over  one-half  of  the 
lodges  take  the  paper  to  any  extent,  and  the  further  fact  that  three- 
fourths  of  the  increase  was  in  lodges  where  the  paper  circulates  the 
most  widely,  the  fact  of  the  good  the  paper  does  in  aiding  to  build  up 
the  order  is  the  more  fully  emphasized.  We  admit  these  figures  are 
a  surprise  to  ourselves,  for  while  being  satisfied  the  Keystone  Workman 
was  an  agent  for  good,  we  had  not  expected  such  a  forcible  demonstra- 
tion of  its  efficiency.  In  the  light  of  the  above  should  not  every  lodge 
come  to  the  front  at  once  and  place  this  medium  of  helpful  work  in  the 
hands  of  each  of  their  m-embers.— ^e^/stone  Workman. 


h 


xxxiv 


Selected  Literature. 
The  Press  and  Societies. 


"  Is  it  of  advantage  to  a  society  to  publish  an  official  paper,  and 
does  the  benefit  derived  from  such  publication  warrant  the  expense  ?  " 
First.    As  to  the  advantage. 

An  intelligently  conducted  journal,  which  is  conscientiously  de- 
voted to  a  worthy  object,  is  the  strongest  engine  for  good  yet  dis- 
covered. If  it  is  the  organ  of  a  guild,  designed  to  promote  the  best 
interests  of  its  members,  it  is  more  of  a  necessity  to  the  success  of  the 
organization  than  any  other  influence  yet  employed.  This  was  proved 
by  the  pioneer  journals  published  in  the  interest  of  the  first  beneficial 
order,  the  Ancient  Order  of  United  Workmen,  which  organization 
began  to  expand  and  grow  and  find  favor  among  a  wider  range  of 
people  under  the  fostering  care  of  its  newspapers. 

Why  a  well-conducted  journal  in  such  interest  is  a  necessity  is 
easily  explained.  In  a  community  of  purpose  between  merchants, 
manufacturers,  and  artizans,  it  is  necessary  to  carry  on  large  corres- 
pondence regarding  the  means  by  which  such  purpose  is  to  be  en- 
compassed, and  the  immense  growth  of  these  interests  at  business 
centers  has  for  many  years  necessitated  the  publication  of  trade 
journals,  to  either  lead  or  supplement  such  correspondence.  In  some 
localities  these  journals  are  issued  daily,  in  others  twice  a  week,  and 
in  only  rare  instances  is  the  interval  between  dates  more  than  a  week. 
They  post  their  readers  in  everything  that  is  transpiring  in  the  in- 
terests they  represent,  clearly  indicate  the  state  of  trade,  adduce  facts 
which  point  to  a  prosperous  outcome  or  the  reverse,  and  as  a  means 
of  communication  between  buyer  and  seller,  manufacturer  and  the 
consumer,  employer  and  employe,  have  become  absolutely  indispen- 
sable. They  prove  that  there  can  be  no  community  without  sympathy, 
and  no  one  need  be  told  that  sympathy  cannot  subsist  without  commu- 
nication. 

How  much  more  strongly  this  sentiment  applies  to  the  conduct  of 
a  fraternity  than  to  mere  business  relations.  Without  sympathy 
fraternity  would  be  as  impossible  as  vegetation  without  light  and 
heat.  But  men  must  be  kept  informed  regarding  the  prime  objects  of 
this  sentiment ;  must  be  constantly  advised  as  to  the  merits  and  needs, 
and  told  with  much  reiteration  what  will  best  subserve  its  require- 
ments. It  is  only  the  man  of  narrow  mind  and  limited  information 
who  is  without  sympathy  for  everything  designed  to  benefit  our  com- 
mon humanity.  When  his  intellect  is  opened  by  a  fair  statement  of 
the  truth,  his  view  is  enlarged  and  his  selfishness  conquered  if  he  has 
a  heart. 

But  what  are  the  means  for  imparting  this  information  most  ad- 
vantageously ?  Unquestionably  oral  lectures  are  good  for  the  purpose, 
but  they  are  expensive  and  cannot  reach  as  many  people  as  the^ 


Selected  Literature, 


XXXV 


public  press.  They  must  be  attended  at  stated  times,  or  not  at  all. 
The  printed  sheet  is  always  ready  for  reference,  and  may  be  conned 
at  leisure  and  referred  to  again  and  again  for  any  point  not  fully  un- 
derstood at  first  reading.  It  is  a  record  with  only  one  meaning, 
whereas  the  oral  address  is  subject  to  various  interpretations. 
Better  than  all,  however,  the  journal  renews  the  fraternal  bond  of 
sympathy  in  every  successive  issue,  by  relating  new  incidents  and 
putting  forward  fresh  incentives  to  vigilance  and  exertion,  by  arous- 
ing the  ardor  of  the  wavering  and  encasing  faithful  workers  in 
strengthened  panoply.  It  corrects  distorted  conceptions  by  revealing 
the  reality  of  the  situation,  and  places  in  the  hands  of  our  friends  an 
influence  for  good  which  can  be  obtained  by  no  other  means. 

There  is  but  one  way  to  overcome  the  scores  of  impediments  which 
vicious  social  laws  have  obtruded  against  the  exercise  of  universal 
charity.  The  gulf  which  separates  grades  of  persons  who  are  widely 
different  in  their  natures  and  circumstances  can  never  be  passed  save 
by  the  means  of  inter-communication  supplied  by  a  liberal  and  an 
eclectic  press.  No  matter  how  good  a  man  may  be,  he  will  never 
really  assist  his  needy  brother  till  he  can  understand  him,  till  he  can 
fathom  the  need  and  feel  for  or  with  him.  It  is  the  lack  of  this  that 
keeps  the  poor  aloof  from  the  rich,  the  ignorant  from  the  learned,  the 
viciously  inclined  from  the  pure  and  noble.  Often  would  they  be  glad 
to  help  and  be  helped,  to  teach  and  to  learn,  to  lift  and  be  lifted,  but 
from  ignorance  of  each  other  they  are  helpless  to  give  or  receive. 
Men  and  women  who  seem  to  possess  every  other  requisite  for  philan 
thropic  work  fail  utterly  through  lack  of  knowledge  of  each  other 
and  the  best  means  to  employ  for  their  purpose.  How  is  this  knowl- 
edge to  reach  them,  except  through  an  alert,  comprehensive,  and 
reliable  journal,  edited,  published,  and  circulated,  for  this  identical 
purpose  ?  There  is  no  other  way,  except  through  processes  much 
more  tedious  and  expensive,  and  not  near  so  promising  in  practical 
results. 

Second.    Does  the  benefit  warrant  the  expense  ? 

This  is  the  question  the  merchant  asks  when  he  places  his  adver- 
tisement in  a  newspaper,  and  he  finds  his  answer  in  an  increase  of 
trade.  Thus  he  is  encouraged  to  continue  advertising,  which  he 
enlarges  as  trade  increases,  and  at  length  he  finds  that  publicity  is 
the  main  factor  of  his  business.  If  he  quits  advertising,  his  customers 
fall  off,  and  it  is  not  long  before  he  is  forgotten.  Having  failed  to 
keep  in  communication  with  the  public,  they  stop  communication  with 
him,  and  the  result  need  not  be  described. 

What  other  means  does  our  order  possess  of  keeping  its  claims  to 
public  confidence  continually  and  reliably  before  the  people  at  a  mere 
nominal  cost,  if  it  decides  that  the  benefit  derived  from  an  official 
journal  does  not  warrant  the  expense  ?  Like  the  merchant,  it  must 
have  publicity,  and  further  than  this,  it  must  have  frequent  public 
exhibits  of  its  financial  condition,  as  well  as  its  wants  and  expecta- 


xxxvi 


Selected  Literature. 


tions,  if  it  wishes  to  enjoy  the  confidence  and  patronage  of  the  public. 
In  other  words,  every  fraternal  organization  must  have  a  mouthpiece 
that  addresses  the  million  in  a  comprehensive  and  understandable 
way,  and  we  might  as  well  ask  if  the  running  of  a  steam  engine  in  a 
manufacturing  house,  or  the  use  of  a  battery  at  a  telegraph  station,  or 
even  the  employment  of  a  teacher  in  a  university,  is  a  benefit  war- 
ranted by  the  expense,  as  to  apply  this  question  to  an  official  journal 
for  a  fraternal  society.  Were  the  expense  many  fold  more  than  it  is, 
the  omission  to  provide  such  means  of  frequent  communication  be- 
tween members  of  a  fraternity',  and  between  the  fraternity  and  the 
public,  would  indicate  a  lack  of  interest  in  the  cause  and  a  dereliction 
of  duty  on  the  part  of  those  in  authority. 

We  cannot  surrender  any  of  our  props  or  supports.  We  have  no 
more  reliable  coadjutor  than  the  fraternal  publications.  In  a  great 
measure  they  are  like  the  Arkansas  hunting  dog,  that  was  the  main 
support  of  the  family.  One  day  "  Boss  "  crowded  his  head  into  a  large 
pitcher  to  feast  upon  the  contents,  and  his  master  tried  in  vain  for 
several  hours  to  release  him.  Then,  finding  he  could  not  save  the 
dog,  he  cut  his  head  off  at  the  neck  for  the  sake  of  the  pitcher.  But 
that  did  no  good,  for  he  had  to  break  the  pitcher  to  get  the  head  out. 
If  we  cut  off  the  fraternal  journals,  there  will  be  nothing  left  but  dead 
organizations  and  broken  promises. 

Were  it  advisable  to  enlarge  upon  some  of  the  more  important  of 
these  generalities,  we  would  suggest  that  our  sole  medium  of  commu- 
nication with  the  general  public  are  the  publications  devoted  to  frater- 
nity, and  that  it  is  only  through  such  discussions  as  reach  the  public 
that  we  can  hope  to  influence  the  law-making  power  and  secure  the 
legislation  needed  to  harmonize  the  laws  which  govern  and  protect  us. 

We  cannot  command  the  necessary  space  for  these  discussions  in 
publications  other  than  those  under  our  exclusive  control,  and,  if  we 
could,  the  utterances  thus  conveyed  would  lack  official  force  and 
prove  ineffective.  As  the  politican  selects  an  organ,  or  manufacturer 
a  journal  devoted  to  his  guild,  to  make  known  to  the  people  those 
things  supposed  to  be  of  mutual  interest  to  them  and  the  writers,  so, 
evidently,  should  the  advocate  of  fraternity  profit  by  so  good  an  ex- 
ample by  following  in  the  way  of  these  men  of  ripe  experience.  This 
illustration  seems  to  be  a  conclusive  argument. 

Our  laws  must  be  harmonized  if  we  desire  unanimity  of  action  in 
those  things  which  affect  our  associated  interests,  but  how  is  this  to 
be  brought  about  unless  we  make  our  wants  known  ?  And  how  are 
they  to  be  made  known  if  not  through  an  alert  and  intelligent  frater- 
nal press  ?—T.  J.  Smith. 


Selected  Literature. 
Our  Order, 


xxxyH 


Next  to  home  and  to  country,  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America 
is  first  in  the  hearts  of  its  members.  Woodcraft  is  a  product  of 
the  noonday  of  civilization.  It  must  be  great,  or  it  would  not  be  so 
lifted  up  in  the  hearts  of  the  greatest  people  of  this  the  greatest  of 
all  ages. 

Fraternal  insurance  is  forging  to  the  front  as  the  best  plan  of 
bringing  protection  to  homes  within  the  reach  of  the  common  people. 
Woodcraft  is  in  the  front  ranks  of  fraternal  insurance ;  it  has  garnered 
the  wisdom  and  experience  of  its  predecessors.  "  It  is  the  heir  of  all 
the  ages  in  the  foremost  files  of  time." 

Woodmen  point  with  pride  to  a  rate  of  insurance  the  cheapest  the 
world  has  ever  known ;  to  a  growth  that  surpasses  all  history  ;  to  a 
system  that  is  the  wonder  of  mankind  ;  to  a  fraternal  spirit  that  binds 
together  eighty  thousand  men  as  brothers. 

"  I  dipped  into  the  future,  as  far  as  human  eye  could  see,  saw  the 
vision  of  the  world  and  all  the  wonder  that  would  be."  Our  eyes 
must  be  turned  to  the  front ;  we  must  provide  for  the  future. 

Our  growth  must  be  maintained ;  it  must  be  sound.  New  logs 
must  supply  the  burning  fire.  New  territory  must  be  added  from  time 
to  time.  This  territory  must  be  good.  And  "westward  the  star  of 
empire  takes  its  way."  Our  growth  will  not  continue  if  our  assess- 
ments become  burdensome.  We  must  grow  while  our  burdens  are 
light. 

We  must  grow  as  a  fraternity.  Our  ritual  must  be  improved. 
We  will,  one  day,  be  the  largest  society  in  the  northwest ;  we  must  be 
the  greatest  in  fraternal  spirit.  Much  of  our  future  work  must  be  de- 
voted to  improving  the  fraternal  feature  of  our  order. 

The  work  of  the  administration  of  the  order  is  becoming  immense. 
The  great  system  must  be  preserved  and  improved.  The  powers  and 
relations  of  the  several  departments  must  become  clearly  defined. 
And  over  all  must  be  a  general  supervision  directing  and  assisting  a 
harmonious  whole. 

There  must  be  no  disunion.  No  state  lines  can  bound  the  fraternal 
spirit  of  Woodcraft.  There  is  not  enough  water  in  the  Mississippi  to 
separate  us.  Bound  together  as  one  entire  jurisdiction,  we  know  not 
the  name  of  any  state. 

We  must  see  that  the  great  destiny  of  our  order  is  fulfilled.  We 
must  look  into  the  future,  and  our  development  must  keep  pace  with 
the  march  of  time.  We  are  building  a  structure  that  will  some  day 
afford  protection  for  the  homes  of  a  million  of  freemen  living  in 
that  great  territory  which  reaches  from  the  "  unsalted  seas  "  westward 
to  where  California's  brooks  wash  down  her  sands  of  gold. — Head 
Consul  Northcott. 


xxxviii 


Selected  Literature. 
I/Ocal  Camps, 


The  great  and  absorbing  question  which  to-day  is  ag^itating  the 
minds  and  hearts  of  the  neighbors  throughout  the  entire  jurisdiction 
is  the  one  of  how  to  interest  and  impress  upon  the  minds  of  all  mem- 
bers of  Woodcraft  the  necessity  of  their  attendance  upon  all  meetings 
of  their  Camps.  There  is  one  fact  that  is  prominent  and  cannot  be 
disputed,  that  is,  that  in  union  there  is  strength,  in  numbers  there  is 
inspiration  and  power.  Many  neighbors  who  read  these  lines  will  re- 
call the  experiences  of  his  army  life  ;  how  well  he  remembers  the  beat 
of  the  long  roll,  the  call  to  arms  at  the  midnight  hour,  arousing  him 
from  peaceful  slumbers  and  dreams  of  loved  ones  in  their  happy 
homes  ;  the  hurrying  to  and  fro,  the  sharp  and  ringing  word  of  com- 
mand heard  in  the  midnight  darkness  above  the  rattling  noise  of  fix- 
ing bayonets,  the  hastily  formed  lines,  and  the  final  order,  forward ! 
guide  right !  With  hesitating  steps  he  moves  to  the  front,  gradually 
inclining  to  the  right  until  he  feels  the  touch  of  elbow  of  his  comrade, 
which  like  an  electric  current  permeates  his  whole  being,  inspiring 
him  with  new  courage,  A  spirit  of  inspiration  takes  possession  of 
his  soul,  causing  him  to  feel  that  in  the  presence  and  touch  of  com- 
rades like  these  nothing  but  death  can  stay  his  step  and  cause  him  to 
falter  in  the  presence  of  the  enemy.  Thus  it  is  and  should  be  in  our 
organization.  We  must  learn  to  feel  that  we  are  not  fighting  the  bat- 
tles of  life  alone ;  that  our  struggle  to  provide  comfort  and  ease  for 
our  loved  ones  when  we  have  passed  away  is  not  one  in  which  all  the 
world  fights  against  us,  but  that  we  are  a  part  of  a  great  army,  all  the 
members  of  which  are  marching  shoulder  to  shoulder,  elbow  to  elbow, 
with  comrades  that  can  be  relied  upon  the  same  as  our  comrades  who 
faced  death  on  the  battlefield.  This  is  brotherhood  ;  this  is  comrade- 
ship. In  order  that  this  feeling  may  be  cultivated  it  devolves  upon 
us,  one  and  aL,  to  renew  our  vows  and  pledges,  one  with  the  other ; 
let  come  what  may,  heat  or  cold,  rain  and  storm,  they  will  keep  up 
the  touch  of  elbows,  and  will  see  that  this  bond  of  fraternity  is  made 
so  strong  by  association  that  nothing  can  sever  it.  The  failure,  if 
any  should  overtake  our  order,  will  be  caused  by  the  neglect  of  neigh- 
bors to  attend  and  take  proper  interest  in  the  meetings  of  their  Camp 
—  a  failure  to  keep  up  the  touch  of  elbows  will  tend  to  cause  disinte- 
gration, and  thus  bring  in  its  train  ruin  and  disaster. 

The  addition  of  new  members  to  our  Camps  and  their  retention  are 
questions  of  primary  importance.  The  great  drawback  to  our  order 
is  the  fact  that  too  many  of  our  Camps  fail  to  keep  up  their  work  in 
strict  accordance  with  the  ritual.  Too  many  of  our  neighbors  seek 
admission  without  the  remotest  idea  of  ever  taking  an  active  part  in 
the  work ;  they  seek  admission  only  for  the  pecuniary  benefits  to  be 
derived.  Lodge-rooms  must  be  made  more  attractive,  subjects  of  in- 
terest to  all  must  be  introduced  and  discussed,  a  team  of  bright  and 


Selected  Literature 


xxxix 


active  members  should  be  selected  in  each  Camp,  and  induced  to  mem- 
orize the  ritual ;  they  should  rehearse  their  work  until  they  have 
committed  to  memory  every  word  of  same.  This  selection  should  be 
made  of  members  who  will  at  all  times  be  present  at  the  adoption 
of  members;  the  work  will  then  be  so  perfect  and  impressive  that  it 
will  ever  be  remembered  by  the  neighbor  as  one  of  the  pleasantest 
hours  of  his  life  ;  and  while  the  primary  object  of  his  seeking  admis- 
sion may  not  be  fraternal,  but  one  of  duty  to  wife  and  children,  and 
while  we  recognize  this  to  be  the  primary  consideration  in  the  minds 
and  hearts  of  all  the  neighbors,  and  viewed  from  this  standpoint  fra- 
ternity is  of  secondary  importance,  yet  the  moment  the  neighbor  is 
obligated  he  has  secured  to  his  family  the  protection  sought.  Then 
fraternity  should  come  to  the  front,  and  the  work  in  the  Camps,  if 
carried  out  as  outlined  herein,  will  influence  him,  and  by  reason  of  the 
impressions  indelibly  fixed  upon  his  mind,  and  by  reason  of  this  work 
so  perfectly  done,  he  will  be  made  to  feel  that  the  obligation  and  signs 
given,  with  the  grasp  of  fellcwship,  have  a  significance  that  implies 
that  there  is  a  new  relation  existing,  so  marked  as  to  be  discernable 
by  strangers.  This  feeling  will  inspire  him  to  carry  out  in  his  every- 
day life  the  lessons  he  has  been  taught,  to  the  end  that  the  principles 
of  brotherly  love  may  be  promulgated  and  the  circle  of  his  influence 
for  good  broadened.  As  a  further  inducement  to  cause  an  increased 
attendance  of  members  upon  their  Camp  meetings,  it  is  suggested 
that  a  neighbor  in  each  Camp  be  selected,  one  who  has  some  knowl- 
edge of  the  military  drill,  to  instruct  the  members  in  a  few  of  the 
foot  movements,  and  teach  them  how  to  take  the  proper  position  when 
in  line.  By  devoting  a  little  time  at  each  meeting  of  your  Camp  in 
this  instruction,  you  will  not  only  interest  and  increase  the  attendance 
of  the  neighbors,  but  you  will  soon  have  caused  such  a  change  in  the 
appearance  of  the  neighbors  that  it  will  be  surprising  to  all.  Instead 
of  the  halting  and  slovenly  step  which  so  many  times  greet  us  when 
Camps  make  their  appearance  in  public,  they  will  have  a  dignified 
and  military  appearance,  one  that  will  so  favorably  impress  the  pub- 
lic that  it  will  inure  to  the  benefit  of  our  order. —  Director  J.  N.  Beece. 


BeneMs  to  be  Derived  Prom  Woodcraft. 


The  benefits  of  being  a  member  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of 
America  are  too  many  to  be  mentioned  in  a  five  hundred-word  article  : 
The  protection  of  home,  the  fellowship  of  Neighbors,  the  education 
received  in  the  Camp,  and  the  logging  bees ;  the  lessons  taught  of 
good-will  towards  all  men.  There  is  no  backache  there  caused  by 
sawing  logs  (after  the  first  night),  and  it  occurs  to  me  that  one  of  the 


xl 


Selected  Literature. 


benefits  of  being  a  member  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  is 
the  fact  that  we  will  not  be  expected  to  rise  before  the  sun,  take  our 
ax  and  lay  low  the  monarch  of  the  forest,  and  with  our  maul  and 
wedge  split  rails  ;  this  has  been  done  for  us  by  the  Ancient  Woodmen 
of  America ;  but  we  do  hew  through  the  dense  forests  of  want  and 
privation  a  broad  pathway  for  the  loved  ones  God  has  placed  under 
our  protection.  We  join  the  Masons  and  other  kindred  orders  to 
gratify  a  morbid  curiosity  —  the  Woodmen  from  an  impulse  of  un- 
selfish love  for  those  dear  to  us.  We  recognize  in  each  neighbor  the 
same  unselfih  motive,  and  we  can  but  respect  him  for  it.  We  find 
this  fraternal  feeling  of  great  benefit  to  ourselves,  as  it  strengthens 
our  purpose  and  lightens  our  burdens. 

If  we  seek  insurance  for  the  protection  of  our  families,  we  find  it 
at  actual  cost  in  this  society.  There  are  no  large  dividends  to  be  de- 
clared to  stockholders  or  princely  salaries  paid  to  presidents  or 
agents,  but  every  dollar  and  every  cent  of  the  assessment  we  pay  is 
faithfully  paid  to  the  beneficiary,  and  an  account  rendered  to  each 
neighbor  before  ho  is  called  upon  to  pay  another. 

They  tell  us  this  society  will  be  short-lived,  and  yet  there  are 
societies  in  existence  and  doing  business  to-day  in  the  old  world  that 
were  founded  on  similar  plans  over  two  hundred  years  ago ;  and  I 
have  no  fears  that  that  will  be  too  short  a  period  to  answer  my  pur- 
poses. 

We  are  told  our  assessments  will  increase  in  number  as  the  order 
grows  older.  Last  year  I  paid  an  old-line  company  a  premium  on  a 
policy  for  $1,000,  taken  out  at  the  age  of  twenty-seven  years,  of  $16.12. 
I  paid  $16.50  for  $3,000  in  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America,  taken 
out  at  the  age  of  thirty-eight.  At  this  rate  we  can  stand  an  increased 
number  of  assessments  if  necessary,  and  still  have  the  dividends, 
salaries,  and  commissions  of  the  old-line  companies  in  our  own  pockets 
instead  of  in  —  Canada. 

An  incident  occurred  in  our  city  germane  to  the  subject  I  would 
like  to  relate  here.  A  young  man  was  engaged  in  mercantile  business 
with  a  capital  of  about  $2,000.  His  health  failed,  he  struggled  along 
for  two  or  three  years  to  keep  his  head  above  water,  but  reverse  after 
reverse  came,  and  the  sheriff  came  and  closed  his  door  and  left  him 
penniless.  Within  three  months  he  died,  leaving  a  loving  wife  with 
three  small  children,  but  during  his  health  he  had  placed  his  family 
under  the  protection  of  fraternal  societies,  one  of  which  placed  in  the 
widow's  hands  a  draft  for  $3,000,  the  other  $1,000.  The  members  as- 
sisted her  in  selecting  a  little  home  and  placing  $3,000  at  interest. 
The  baby  died  in  its  infancy.  With  this  interest  the  mother  succeeded 
in  keeping  the  boy  and  girl  in  school  through  our  common  school 
course.  To-day  the  boy,  a  bright  lad  of  eighteen,  is  filling  a  respon- 
sible and  lucrative  position,  and  the  young  lady  is  giving  music  les- 
sons and  finishing  her  musical  education,  a  blessing  to  that  mother, 
and  the  pride  of  the  noble  brotherhood  that  has  watched  over  them. 


Selected  Literature. 


xli 


We  find  similar  incidents  on  all  sides  of  us,  and  it  is  a  satisfaction 
to  us  to  feel  that  every  dollar  we  place  in  this  fund  goes  to  relieve  the 
burdens  of  the  aged  father  and  mother  or  widow  and  orphans  of  our 
neighbors,  and  that  it  is  a  substantial  offering  of  love  and  sympathy 
in  their  greatest  hour  of  need,  and  the  comforting  thought  that  the 
protecting  arm  of  this  noble  order  will  sustain  those  most  dear  to  us 
when  we  are  called  to  cross  the  dark  river  of  death,  and  the  knowl- 
edge that  we  have  tried  to  do  our  duty  will  soften  the  pillow  of  pain 
in  that  trying  hour. — H.  C.  Hedges,  Head  Adviser. 


How  to  Make  Camps  Prosper, 


The  way  to  make  Camps  pj'osper  is  to  rule  out  all  unruly  and  un- 
governable members,  those  who  take  no  interest,  or  but  little,  in  the 
fraternity,  neighbors  who  scarcely  ever  attend  its  meetings,  members 
who  will  not  read  order  literature,  nor  try  to  post  themselves  in  the 
work  of  the  Camp,  fault-finders  and  chronic  grumblers,  narrow- 
minded  and  stingy  men  who  want  to  rule  or  ruin.  No  Camp  can  pros- 
per with  such  members.  What  we  want  is  honest,  large-hearted, 
unselfish.  God-fearing,  and  men-loving  men ;  men  who  are  willing  to 
devote  their  time,  talent,  and  money  for  the  promotion  of  their  Camp 
and  the  general  good  of  the  fraternity  ;  men  who  will  read,  think,  and 
act ;  men  of  sympathy,  who  can  appreciate  the  noble  principles  and 
teachings  of  the  craft ;  men  who  will  visit  the  sick  neighbors,  care 
for  the  needy,  look  after  the  widows  and  orphans  of  deceased  neigh- 
bors, and  who  are  always  ready  to  assist  all  worthy  distressed  neigh- 
bors ;  men  who  will  aid  all  enterprises  calculated  to  advance  the  in- 
terests and  promote  the  harmony  of  the  Camp  and  the  entire  fraternity, 
such  men  will  build  up  a  Camp.  Dignified,  courteous  men  should  be 
chosen,  more  for  their  ability  to  fill  the  place  than  to  honor  them  be- 
cause they  are  good  fellows  and  popular  among  the  neighbors.  Many 
Camps  have  suffered  because  they  elect  to  office  men  who  were  in- 
competent. Nature  has  done  for  some  what  art  or  science  can  never 
remove,  because  they  are  "made  that  way."  A  good  Clerk  may  fill 
some  other  office  in  the  Camp  to  the  satisfaction  of  all,  but  would  not 
have  the  ability  to  preside.  There  were  a  good  many  brave,  heroic 
soldiers  in  the  war  who  would  never  make  good  generals.  Camps 
should  be  more  social,  have  more  frequent  visits  one  Camp  with 
another.  Visitors  to  Camps  should  have  more  attention  paid  them; 
they  should  be  made  to  feel  more  at  home  in  strange  Camps.  Because 
•a  man  is  not  dressed  in  the  latest  fashion  is  no  reason  that  he  should 
not  be  treated  as  a  neighbor.  There  is  many  an  honest  heart  beneath 
a  ragged  coat.    We  should  hold  more  socials,  invite  into  our  halls  the 


xlii 


Selected  Literature. 


public,  and  let  them  see  what  we  are  doing  for  the  good  of  our  fellow- 
men,  and  by  our  daily  walk  and  conversation  let  them  know  that  our 
objects  and  aims  are  to  do  good  to  all.  Neighbors,  do  you  appreciate 
our  noble  order  and  give  it  your  best  efforts  to  increase  the  member- 
ship thereof  ?  Or  are  you  like  a  great  many  others,  selfish  enough  to 
participate  in  all  its  benefits  but  do  nothing  in  return  to  advance  its 
interests?  If  this  is  so,  does  not  your  conscience  accuse  you?  We 
think  that  the  splendid  record  of  the  past,  together  with  the  bright 
future  before  us,  should  inspire  and  enthuse  the  most  careless  among 
our  members  and  cause  them  to  do  valiantly  in  the  future  for  the  up- 
building of  our  order.  Members  should  not  forget  the  fact  that  the 
most  prosperous  Camps  are  those  that  have  the  best  attendance. —  /. 
A.  Westfall,  Knoxville^  111. 


A  Word  of  Advice, 


The  Bible  says  :  '*He  that  does  not  make  provision  for  his  own 
family  is  worse  than  an  infidel." 

My  friend,  we  hope  you  will  pardon  us  for  asking  you  a  few  direct 
questions,  as  our  intentions  are  pure  and  good,  accompanied  with  no 
selfish  motives  whatever.  In  the  first  place,  have  you  a  wife  ?  Have 
you  a  family  of  children  ?  If  so,  then  let  us  ask  you  if  you  own  a 
house,  and  do  you  depend  on  your  salary  or  wages  to  support  your 
family  V  Have  you  any  money  laid  away  to  live  on  in  case  of  sickness, 
or  can  you  possibly  save  any  money  from  your  salary  after  paying 
your  rent  and  feeding  and  clothing  your  family  ?  If  that  is  your  con- 
dition, did  you  ever  once  consider  seriously  what  would  become  of 
your  family  if  anything  should  happen  to  you  ?  Look  at  your  good 
wife  and  dear  little  children  the  next  time  you  sit  down  to  your 
dinner,  and  ask  yourself,  how  would  they  get  along  if  death  or  an  ac- 
cident should  render  you  unable  to  provide  for  them  ?  If  you  have  no 
wife  or  children  to  care  for,  then  a  good  old  father  or  widowed 
mother  may  depend  on  you  to  provide  for  them  in  their  declining 
years.  As  long  as  you  are  alive  and  well  no  worry  is  necessary,  but 
remember  life  is  uncertain  and  death  is  sure,  and  our  object  is  to  show 
you  just  how  to  protect  yourself  in  case  you  are  sick  or  crippled,  and 
those  dependent  on  you  in  case  of  your  death ;  and  with  a  brotherly 
feeling  for  all  of  God's  creation,  we  beg  you  to  consider  this  matter 
seriously  and  make  provisions  for  yourself  and  those  dependent  upon 
you,  by  becoming  a  member  of  that  grand  and  powerful  fraternal' 
order,  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America.  You  are  cordially  invited 
to  come  and  sit  with  us  around  our  camp-fire. —  Woodman. 


Selected  Literature.  xliii 
From  Congressman  Bryan, 


Time  forbids  a  lengthy  letter,  but  if  you  will  excuse  brevity,  will 
say  that  I  am  a  member  of  the  order,  and  I  am  glad  of  it.  The  Modern 
Woodmen  enjoy  the  fraternal  and  social  advantages  of  such  organiza- 
tions and  receive  a  safe  insurance  at  a  reasonable  expense.  Assess- 
ment insurance  costs  much  less  than  what  is  known  as  old-line 
insurance,  and  multitudes  are  thus  able  to  make  provision  for  the 
members  of  their  families  in  case  of  death  who  would  not  be  able  to 
carry  insurance  in  the  regular  companies. 

The  importance  of  life  insurance  grows  upon  one  as  he  considers  it. 
It  enables  young  men  to  assume  the  responsibilities  of  married  life 
earlier  than  they  would  otherwise  dare,  and  thus  gives  greater 
stability  to  social  order.  Instead  of  waiting  until  he  has  a  fortune  to 
lay  at  the  feet  of  his  bride,  the  young  man  by  insurance  protecting  his 
wife  against  the  contingency  of  his  death,  has  her  as  his  willing  com- 
panion in  the  securing  of  a  competence  which  both  can  enjoy  in  after 
years  the  more  fully  because  they  have  earned  it  together. 

I  believe  the  order  is  under  excellent  management,  and  trust  its 
growth  in  membership  may  be  as  rapid  as  is  consistent  with  the  main- 
tenance of  its  present  high  standard.  The  social  advantages  of  the 
order  depend  upon  the  character  of  its  members.  Let  there  be  no  low- 
ering of  the  bars  to  the  unworthy,  and  let  the  medical  examination  be 
strict  enough  to  protect  from  injustice  those  in  the  enjoyment  of  the 
necessary  physical  qualifications. —  W.  J.  Bryan^  Lincoln.,  Neb. 


Human  F'ellowship, 


The  human  heart  is  like  a  tendril ;  it  cannot  grow  by  itself  and 
flourish  alone,  but  leans  and  reaches  out  to  other  hearts  and  fellow- 
ships. On  this  fact  rests  the  permanency  of  the  home,  of  love  and 
friendship,  fraternal  groups,  human  governments,  and  human  society. 
This  instinct  and  sentiment  bound  the  savage  and  early  man  into 
groups  and  classes.  It  is  the  need  men  have  for  society  and  fellow- 
ship that  makes  the  city  so  popular  as  a  habitation  for  man.  Men 
will  suffer  poverty  and  hard  toil  in  a  large  city  rather  than  go  to  the 
country  neighborhood  and  have  comparative  ease  and  means.  Young 
women  will  stay  in  close  quarters  and  continue  in  long  hours  of  toil 
for  small  pay  rather  than  go  to  a  country  home  away  from  their  com- 
panions and  friends.  I  read  the  insatiable  thirst  of  the  human  heart  for 
fellowship  in  many  ways  and  by  many  signs.  The  groups  of  young  men, 
older  men,  and  boys  that  gather  in  the  store  and  on  the  street  corners 


xliv 


Selected  Literature. 


are  drawn  there  by  need  of  their  hearts  for  fellowship  and  society.  No 
greater  indictment  of  the  homes  of  any  community  can  be  found  than 
the  fact  that  its  members  leave  them  for  the  fellowship  of  the  street. 
No  more  pathetic  sight  is  furnished  in  life  than  to  see  a  young  man 
whose  heart  aches  for  this  sympathy  and  fellowship  trying  to  get 
satisfaction  from  the  juiceless  gossip  of  the  street.  Among  the  hap- 
piest men  in  this  world  is  the  man  who  finds  this  fellowship  in  his 
home,  who  finds  the  deepest,  sweetest,  truest  responses  to  his  heart 
cravings  around  his  own  fireside,  under  the  cheerful  smile  of  his  wife 
and  the  glad  laughter  and  frolic  of  his  children,  and  with  the  com- 
panionship of  his  friends  under  his  own  roof.  Happy  also  the  man 
who  finds  this  fellowship  in  the  highest  association  known  to  man  in 
this  world  —  the  fellowship  of  men  and  women  at  the  altar  of  God  and 
the  worship  of  ihe  highest  goodness.  The  fellowships  of  religion  are 
the  strongest  and  deepest,  the  sweetest  and  most  satisfying  of  all  the 
unions  and  fraternities  of  man.  But  for  some  reason  or  other  the 
churches  have  not  attracted  to  their  fellowships  the  toiling  masses  ;  the 
strong  and  big-hearted  men  of  our  day  are  not  always  found  in  the 
pews.  Where  is  the  fault  ?  Is  the  church's  light  too  pale,  or  her 
heart  throbs  too  faint,  her  blood  too  thin  and  cold,  her  sympathy  too 
perfunctory  and  heartless  ?  And  why  does  she  not  draw  within  her 
walls  the  brawn  and  muscle  of  our  land  ?  Why  are  not  the  rugged, 
sturdy  toilers  attracted  to  her  shrine  for  the  sympathy  and  fellowship 
their  hearts  crave  ?  Why  are  not  the  young  men  warming  their 
neglected  and  shivering  hearts  at  her  sacred  altar  ?  Because  the 
church  has  not  used  her  opportunity,  nor  been  the  place  and  home  it 
should  be  to  satisfy  the  cravings  and  restless  throbs  of  humanity's 
great  and  famished  heart.  Fraternities  like  the  Modern  Woodmen 
of  America  respond  to  the  need  of  the  human  heart ;  strong,  toiling 
men  binding  themselves  together  to  bear  each  other's  burdens,  and 
relieve  each  other's  sorrows,  and  contribute  to  each  other's  joys.  In 
their  humanity,  their  warmth,  their  thoughtful  consideration  for 
the  emergencies  and  necessities  of  this  world  they  stand  in  striking 
contrast  to  that  religion  whose  only  thought  and  investment  is  in  the 
next  world  ;  in  their  strong,  hearty,  human  fellowships,  their  warm 
hand-grasps,  their  response  to  the  needs  and  sorrows  of  their  fellows, 
their  natural  free  intercourse  and  hope-like  spirit  they  satisfy  the 
needs  of  the  human  heart  for  strong,  hearty,  generous  human  fellow- 
ship. I  am  not  among  those  teachers  of  religion  that  condemn  the 
fraternities  and  benevolent  secret  orders  because  they  take  the  place 
of  religious  fellowship  and  are  strong  competitors  of  the  church  by 
attracting  large  classes  of  sturdy  men  to  their  camp-fires.  Human 
fellowship,  sympathy,  and  hand-grasps  are  just  the  same  under  what- 
ever name  and  fellowship,  and  so  far  as  fraternities  like  the  Modern 
Woodmen  of  America  contribute  to  the  happiness  of  man,  slake  the 
thirst  of  the  human  heart,  help  to  relieve  the  burdens  and  sorrows  of 
life,  they  are  doing  a  religious  work,  at  least  the  kind  of  religion  I  be- 


Selected  Literature, 


xlv 


lieve  in.  But  the  main  object  of  our  noble  order  is  to  provide  support 
for  our  dependent  and  loved  ones,  to  insure  financial  aid  to  our  families 
when  we  are  dead  and  g-one.  So  some  seventy-five  thousand  of  us  have 
banded  ourselves  together  in  a  great  brotherhood  or  order  throughout 
this  great  northwest,  and  without  any  capital  except  our  honor  and 
loyalty  to  our  agreement,  and  the  income  from  our  daily  toil.  When- 
ever one  of  our  members  is  taken  away,  and  he  was  in  good  standing, 
we  all  chip  in  a  little  and  give  it  to  the  deceased  neighbor's  family, 
or  the  person  that  is  dependent  on  him,  so  that  they  will  not  feel  the 
pangs  of  poverty  in  the  hour  they  are  stricken  with  grief.  Nothing 
could  be  simpler ;  it  is  not  a  number  of  private  individuals  with  a  cap- 
ital away  up  in  the  millions  taking  risks  on  your  life  and  using  your 
necessity  lOr  their  private  gain,  but,  on  the  contrary,  it  is  a  brother- 
hood mutually  agreed  to  help  each  other's  families  in  a  time  of  need. 
It  is  the  principle  of  co-operation  to  meet  the  emergencies  of  life.  It 
is  based  on  the  principle  that  a  great  number  of  men  can  do  a  big 
thing  easier  than  one  man  can  do  a  small  thing ;  that  is,  this  great 
brotherhood  of  neighbors  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  can  raise  $3,000 
and  send  it  to  your  widows  easier  than  $50  could  be  raised  by  your 
friends.  This  is  one  of  the  great  achievements  of  civilization,  that 
men  band  themselves  together  for  each  other's  welfare.  Grinding 
poverty  is  the  widest  door  in  the  house  of  shame,  and  the  fraternity 
that  gives  to  the  wife  and  daughters  of  a  deceased  member  a  thousand 
dollars  or  more  is  helping  on  the  morals  of  the  people  and  closing  up 
houses  of  infamy.  It  is  every  man's  duty  to  make  some  such  provis- 
ion for  his  family  and  save  them  many  heartaches. —  J.  A.  Westfall. 


''Music  Hath  Charms/'  Mtc, 


If  we  could  have  our  way,  a  portion  of  the  time  of  every  Camp 
meeting  would  be  devoted  to  music,  both  instrumental  and  vocal. 
There  is  no  way  in  which  an  assembly  is  so  much  harmonized  as  by 
its  magnetic  charm.  No  other  influence  sinks  deeper  and  exerts  a 
more  refining  and  soothing  influence.  How  pleasant  a  meeting  seems 
when  all  hearts  and  voices  roll  together  in  melodious  sound.  It  drives 
dull  care  away,  makes  life  look  more  hopeful,  and  binds  the  whole 
brotherhood  more  closely.  The  churches  all  over  the  land  under- 
stand the  philosophy  of  its  inspiration  and  employ  the  best  talent  that 
can  be  had  to  grace  their  choirs.  They  know  its  magical  effects  upon 
the  human  mind.  Of  course  our  Camps  cannot  go  into  this  expense, 
but  they  can  do  better  than  they  do,  for  there  are  in  all  of  them 
musically  talented  persons  who  would  take  pleasure  in  giving  their 


xlvi 


Selected  Literature. 


valuable  services  to  our  meetings  and  entertainments  were  they  prop- 
erly encouraged.  And  if  money  has  to  be  expended,  in  what  way  can 
it  be  expended  more  advantageously  ? 

"  Music  hath  charms  to  soothe  the  savage  breast,"  says  Congreve ; 
and  it  is  said  that  when  Orpheus  played  upon  the  lyre  all  nature 
stopped  to  listen,  and  even  the  stern  gods  of  Hades  were  softened.  If 
such  is  the  case,  how  much  more  will  it  charm  and  captivate  the 
mind  of  the  intelligent  and  cultivated  ?  In  the  home  music  has  its 
influence,  and  many  and  pleasant  the  hours  passed  in  listening  to  its 
delightful  strains.  It  is  the  soul's  refuge  in  trouble  and  its  hiding- 
place  from  the  world's  noise  and  strife.  It  soothes  the  heart  and  rests 
the  mind. 

If  music  is  all  this  and  more,  what  more  appropriate  place  can  be 
found  for  its  rendition  and  enjoyment  than  in  our  Camps  ?  Every 
Camp  should  own  a  good  instrument  and  employ  some  one  to  play  and 
lead  the  singing.  Let  music  ring  throughout  our  Camp-rooms. — 
Woodman, 


Public  Entertainments  by  Camps, 


No  great  enterprise  succeeds  in  this  driving  business  era  without 
persistent  advertising.  Millions  of  dollars  are  spent  every  year  for 
posters  and  hand-bills,  brass  bands  and  bill  posters,  runners  and  solic- 
itors. The  public  eye  must  be  caught,  the  public  ear  arrested,  the 
public  attention  attracted. 

The  Modern  Woodmen  are  no  exception  to  the  rule.  We  have  a 
first-class  article  to  offer,  the  best  and  cheapest  of  its  kind  in  the 
market,  but  the  great  public  do  not  know  it  in  all  localities.  Great 
numbers  of  those  in  every  community  are  ignorant  of  its  scope  and 
objects.  They  must  be  informed.  Men  are  naturally  sociable  ;  they 
like  to  be  amused  ;  they  will  attend  a  public  meeting  and  spend  a 
whole  evening  if  you  have  a  little  music  and  lunch  or  speaking  and 
pay  you  for  the  privilege,  when  they  would  not  stop  an  hour  during 
business  hours  to  hear  you  talk  of  Woodcraft  if  you  would  pay  them 
for  the  privilege  of  talking.  Therefore  the  custom,  becoming  quite 
common,  of  the  Camps  giving  public  entertainments  should  be  en- 
couraged and  their  number  increased.  The  managers  should  see  that 
those  of  the  general  public  who  are  eligible  and  desirable  should  re- 
ceive special  invitation  and  be  urged  to  come.  Music  and  a  little 
refreshment  for  the  inner  man,  and  even  a  little  dancing,  may  properly 
be  a  part  of  the  programme,  but  somewhere  there  should  be  a  brief, 
plain  statement  of  the  objects,  aims,  and  progress  of  Woodcraft.  Those 
without  the  fold  should  have  their  attention  called  to  our  order ;  to 
its  rapid  growth  ;  to  its  cheapness ;  to  its  promptness  in  payment 


iSelecttd  Literature, 


xlvii 


The  object  of  the  entertainment,  of  course,  is  twofold  ;  to  furnish  en- 
joyment to  those  who  already  belong-  to  us,  especially  to  our  wives  and 
children,  who  do  not  attend  our  Camp  meetings,  and  to  attract  the  at- 
tention of  those  who  ought  to  be  our  neighbors  in  the  full  sense  of 
the  term. 

We  can  not  close  this  article,  however,  without  saying  that  public 
entertainments  will  not-accomplish  much  in  themselves  towards  in- 
creasing membership  unless  they  are  followed  by  a  little  judicious 
personal  solicitation. 

The  average  man  does  not  appreciate  the  great  duty  of  providing 
for  his  own  when  he  shall  be  taken.  He  will  be  in  a  frame  of  mind  to 
listen  to  personal  solicitation  and  yield  to  it  readily  after  he  has  at- 
tended one  of  our  public  entertainments,  but  it  will  seldom  be  the  case 
that  it  has  made  sufficient  impression  upon  him  to  cause  him  to  make 
application  to  become  a  member.  After  every  public  entertainment 
there  should  be  a  systematic  effort  made,  consisting  of  personal  solicita- 
tion by  members  or  by  a  Deputy  Head  Consul  secured  for  that  purpose 
beforehand. 

By  this  means,  and  by  this  means  only,  can  we  get  the  full  benefit 
of  our  labors  in  providing  the  entertainment. — Woodman. 


Judicious  Canvassing. 


A  great  many  members  of  the  fraternal  organizations  think  it  be- 
neath their  dignity  to  solicit  a  person  to  become  a  member,  and  there 
are  those  outside  of  such  societies  who  are  repelled  by  injudicious 
advances  toward  that  end,  says  an  exchange.  Both  these  extremes 
betoken  incorrect  principles.  In  all  fraternal  orders  the  principal 
benefits  of  membership  are  received  by  beneficiaries  of  the  member. 
The  other  benefits  are  twofold ;  to  the  member  himself  during  life, 
in  fraternal  surroundings  and  in  the  pleasant  results  of  brotherly 
unity ;  secondly,  to  the  organization  itself,  because  the  addition  of 
every  worthy  member  brings  strength  and  adds  security  for  its  solidity 
and  perpetuity. 

These  facts  suggest  three  reasons  why  members  of  a  fraternal 
order  should  feel  it  a  pleasure,  pride,  and  duty  in  working  for  new 
members.  If  he  has  a  friend  in  whom  he  and  his  family  has  much 
interest,  he  is  doing  him  a  decided  favor  in  every  way  in  securing  his 
admission  to  the  order.  Then  where  is  the  lack  of  dignity  in  solicit- 
ing a  friend  to  do  something  of  lasting  benefit  to  himself  and  family  ? 
Where  is  there  in  such  soliciting  any  element  that  should  repel  the 
one  approached  ?  Again,  if  a  member  knows  a  person  who  would 
make  a  desirable  member,  and  with  whom  he  has  some  influence,  it 


xlviii 


Selected  Literature. 


is  his  duty  to  try  and  strengthen  the  order  by  securing  such  a  member. 
There  certainly  is  nothing-  in  this  contrary  to  the  spirit  of  true  fra- 
ternal organization. 

But  the  other  extreme  is  also  to  be  avoided.  The  work  with  a 
friend  or  acquaintance  should  be  done  with  him  alone  and  unosten- 
tatiously ;  not  carrying  the  idea  that  the  order  cannot  get  along 
without  him,  that  he  must  join  because  you  want  him  to,  but  upon 
the  broad  principle  of  mutual  benefit.  Never  approach  a  man  in  a 
crowd,  or  at  any  time  except  when  you  have  a  reasonable  length  of 
time  to  explain  things  to  him,  and  he  has  time  to  listen  to  you  with- 
out being  bored  or  kept  from  his  business.  Be  careful  with  whom 
you  labor.  Be  careful  that  they  are  in  every  way  desirable.  Be  sure 
you  know  what  you  are  talking  about,  and  then  do  not  be  afraid  to 
labor  with  them. —  Woodman. 


Brother  Joe, 


He  is  a  member  of  your  lodge,  but  perhaps  you  do  not  call  him 
"Joe  ;"  we  gave  him  this  name  because  it  is  a  plain,  ordinary  name,  and 
Joe  is  a  plain,  ordinary  brother.  He  attends  his  lodge  regularly,  but 
has  little  to  say,  visits  all  membei  s  who  are  sick,  but  lets  some  "  better 
talker  "  inform  the  lodge  as  to  their  condition ;  never  shirks  his  duty 
on  a  committee,  although  he  prefers  that  Brother  Bragg  read  the  re- 
port. When  degrees  are  to  be  conferred  he  is  on  hand  to  get  the 
room  in  order,  and  sometimes  takes  a  minor  part  in  the  work ;  he  is 
just  plain,  ordinary,  unassuming,  third  degree  Joe.  His  lodge  has 
never  honored  him  with  an  office ;  in  fact  it  has  never  occurred  to 
them  that  he  was  deserving,  and  Joe  has  been  content  to  do  good  in 
his  own  quiet  way,  and  has  asked  no  reward.  At  times,  when  some 
gifted  visitor  has  showered  praise  upon  the  officers  for  the  splendid 
condition  of  the  lodge,  Joe's  eyes  have  lighted  up,  and  a  wistful  ex- 
pression has  crept  over  his  wrinkled  face,  half  hoping  that  there 
might  be  some  word  of  praise  or  encouragement  for  him ;  but  com- 
pliments are  not  for  common  men  like  Joe,  and  he  limps  off  home 
feeling  that  after  all  he  is  of  little  consequence,  and  that  the  lodge 
was  very  kind  in  electing  him  to  membership. 

Thus  he  will  go  on  faithfully  doing  what  seems  his  duty,  until  one 
day  a  very  plain  casket  will  be  carried  to  the  cemetery,  a  circle  of 
members  wearing  the  regalia  of  the  order  will  drop  a  sprig  of  ever- 
green into  an  open  grave,  and  then  all  will  march  back  to  the  lodge- 
room —  all  except  Joe.  At  the  next  meeting  a  chair,  which  has 
always  been  filled,  will  be  empty,  and  under  "Good  of  the  Order," 
each  member  will  have  some  instance  to  relate  of  kindness  received 


Selected  Literature. 


xlix 


by  him  from  the  patient,  faithful  brother  who  has  been  called  away, 
the  charter  will  be  draped  in  mourning,  and  a  committee  appointed 
to  draft  resolutions,  and,  perhaps,  Joe's  picture  will  be  enlarged  and 
placed  in  the  hall.  What  a  pity  that  the  dear  old  brother  whose 
heart  would  throb  with  the  slightest  attention,  should  not  receive  a 
small  token  of  his  appreciation  while  living.  But  thus  it  is  in  this 
life.  We  seldom  see  the  use  of  the  common  man  until  he  is  gone 
from  among  us  ;  but  there  is  One  who  sees  his  life  in  its  true  light, 
and  the  time  will  come  when  his  deeds  shall  be  recognized  and  re- 
warded.—  N.  W.  0.  F.  Beview. 


Our  Camp  F'ires, 


Venerable  Consul,  Neighbors  and  Friends : —  From  the  time  Adam 
stood  amid  the  green  fields  of  nature  and  gave  a  name  to  each  and 
every  creature,  on  down  through  all  the  ages  that  have  marked  the 
history  of  man,  it  has  been  the  custom,  either  for  convenience  or 
gratification,  to  give  a  name  to  every  creature  or  thing ;  so  the 
founders  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  selected  a  name  by 
which  the  meetings  thereof  shall  be  known  ;  and  it  seems  to  me  that 
there  is  no  word  in  our  language  that  brings  to  the  mind  of  an  Ameri- 
can more  varied  thoughts  and  scenes  than  the  word  Camp."  At  the 
mentioning  of  the  camp-fire  the  mind  goes  back  through  memory's 
halls,  and  sweeping  away  the  cobwebs  and  dust  of  years  brings  forth 
to  view  the  pictures  hung  thereon.  At  the  sound  of  these  words, 
childhood,  youth,  manhood,  and  age  stand  before  us  in  one  grand 
view.  It  takes  the  student  of  civilization  back  to  the  snow-paths  of 
the  pilgrim  fathers  as  they  wind  up  the  rocky  beach  and  into  the 
wild's  of  New  England's  rocky  shore ;  and  the  giant  strides  of  Ameri- 
can civilization  as  "westward  the  empire  of  state  wended  its  way," 
can  be  traced  by  the  heavenward-wreathing  smoke  and  the  dying 
embers  of  the  "camp-fire,"  while  the  stormy  Atlantic  and  the  golden 
Pacific  were  being  united  in  one  bond  of  love.  The  log  cabin,  church, 
school-house,  and  block-house  arise  before  us,  and  we  can  almost  see 
the  Leather  Stockings,  Royal  Delawares,  and  Cringing  Mingoes  as 
they  smoke  the  pipe  of  peace  around  its  fires  or  plunge  the  cold  and 
relentless  steel  into  the  heart  of  the  enemy.  These  words  recall  the 
giants  of  the  forest  in  their  solemn  majesty,  the  song  of  birds,  the 
musical  ripple  of  silvery  streams  are  heard,  and  we  see  the  white 
caravans  wending  their  way  across  the  flower-bedecked  and  verdant 
prairies  to  circle  at  night  around  its  cheering  flame  while  sturdy 
men  guard  and  protect  those  they  love,  and  comely  matrons  lull  to 
sleep  within  its  shadows  the  statesmen  and  warriors  who  were  to 

c 


1 


Selected  Literature. 


guide  and  defend  this  nation  of  ours ;  for  from  the  pure  air  of  the 
camp-fires  of  America  came  the  breath  of  life  to  this  home  of  liberty, 
this  citadel  of  freedom. 

And  still  other  scenes  there  are  that  come  before  us  at  the  sound 
of  these  words  :  The  bleeding-  feet  and  snows  of  Valley  Forge  and  the 
cotton  bales  of  New  Orleans  are  there  ;  and  again  the  Buena  Vista's 
chaparal  gives  welcome  shade  to  the  dying  hero,  and  the  apple  tree  of 
the  Appomattox  buds  and  blooms  and  bears  its  golden  fruit  as  if 
touched  by  the  magician's  wand.  Thus  it  is  that  every  phase  of 
American  life,  every  step  in  the  progress  of  our  nation,  from  her  con- 
ception in  the  wilderness  to  her  proud  position  at  the  head  of  the 
civilized  world,  has  linked  with  it  memories  of  the  camp-fire.  While 
the  camp-fire  is  near  and  dear  to  all,  yet  to  no  other  class,  society,  or 
organization  has  it  so  great  a  meaning  as  to  the  Modern  Woodmen  of 
America.  Around  its  fire  and  within  its  circle  do  we  learn  the  lessons 
of  love  and  charity  that  mark  our  organization.  It  is  here  we  learn 
for  a  truth  whom  our  neighbor  is  ;  here  we  form  bonds  of  friendship 
and  love  with  our  neighbor,  to  last  until  his  form  is  laid  in  the  silent 
grave  ;  here  we  learn  to  love  those  traits  of  character  that  impelled 
him  to  make  it  possible  for  us  to  turn  from  the  tear-bedewed  earth 
that  has  hidden  forever  from  mortal  vision  the  loved  form  whose 
shadow  will  ne'er  again  fall  athwart  the  hearthstone  of  home ,  to 
that  home,  sad  and  desolate,  but  not  with  empty  hands  and  words 
of  mocking  sympathy  only,  but  we  can  come  to  the  loved  wife  and 
children  and  say  that  the  husband  and  father  in  the  prime  of  life,  in 
the  strength  of  his  manhood,  realized  that  there  is  one  enemy  over 
whom  man  cannot  prevail,  and  that  sooner  or  later  that  enemy  would 
cross  his  path,  and  whether  he  come  in  the  lightning  stroke  or  by 
lingering  and  painful  disease,  there  could  be  but  one  result ;  over  his 
cold  and  lifeless  form  the  cruel  hand  of  death  would  write,  "victory ;  " 
and  while  he  could  not  stay  the  heart-aches  and  sadness,  he  could, 
through  the  munificence  of  the  Modern  Woodmen  of  America,  prepare 
for  the  welfare  of  those  he  loved  ;  for  our  camp-fires  burn  not  for  the 
dead  but  for  the  living  ;  not  for  those  who  have  gone  before  but  for 
those  who  remain 

Woodmen !  how  truly  the  words  of  the  poet  apply  to  our  organiza- 
tion : 

"  Trust  no  future,  howe'er  pleasant ; 
Let  the  dead  past  bury  its  dead  ; 
Act,  act  in  tne  living  present  — 
Heart  within  and  God  o'erhead." 

Let  us.  then,  keep  our  camp-fires  burning,  beacons  unto  the  weary, 
and  as  their  smoke  wreathes  neavenward  may  it  ever  ascend  perfumed 
with  the  incense  of  love  and  charity. — /.  2\  Sanford^  Dixon^  III. 


Selected  Literature. 
State  Camps. 


li 


The  Modern  Woodmen  of  America  has  jurisdiction  in  ten  of  the 
states  in  the  northwest.  This  grand  combination  of  states,  the  home 
of  the  best  people  on  earth,  can  not  be  excelled  in  or  by  any  other 
country  on  the  globe. 

It  is  pleasing  to  know  that  the  organization  of  this  grand  institution 
of  ours  is  patterned  after  that  of  our  fathers,  who  declared  "that 
governments  that  are  instituted  among  men  derive  their  just  powers 
from  the  consent  of  the  governed  ;  that  whenever  any  form  of  govern- 
ment becomes  destructive  of  these  ends  it  is  the  right  of  the  people 
to  alter  or  abolish  it,  and  to  institute  new  government,  laying  its 
foundation  on  such  principles  and  organizing  its  powers  in  such  form 
as  to  them  shall  seem  most  likely  to  effect  their  safety  and  happiness." 

Our  National  Union  is  composed  of  sovereign  and  independent 
states  who  have  entered  into  a  compact  for  particular  purposes.  Our 
Modern  Woodmen  union  is  composed  of  sovereign  and  independent 
states  who  have  entered  into  a  compact  for  their  particular  purpose. 
Thus  our  lines  run  parallel.  The  National  idea,  with  a  big  "N," 
must  prevail  in  our  Modern  Woodman  affairs. 

Instead  of  there  being  forty-four  nations,  there  is  but  one  ;  instead 
of  there  being  forty-four  sovereignties,  there  is  but  one.  These  states 
are  integral  and  subordinate  parts  of  one  great  whole.  So  it  is  with 
our  organization.  We  have  jurisdiction  in  the  several  separate  states- 
composing  the  jurisdiction  of  our  order;  instead  of  these  separate 
states  being  separate  and  distinct  jurisdictions,  they  are  as  one  ;  the 
separate  state  organizations  are  integral  and  subordinate  parts  of  one 
great  organization.  The  central  idea  of  our  American  people  is  that 
we  are  a  nation,  that  we  are  one  people,  undivided  and  indivisible. 
This  idea  must  prevail  in  our  Woodmen  organization.  It  should  be 
written  on  the  banner  of  every  Camp  that  our  Head  Camp  is  the  one 
head  of  the  organization,  undivided  and  indivisible.  With  this  senti- 
ment predominant  there  will  be  no  danger,  though  the  boundaries 
should  embrace  the  half  of  a  continent.  Like  the  sun  in  the  heavens, 
which  diffuses  light  and  life  and  warmth,  and  by  its  subtle  influence 
holds  the  planets  in  their  orbits,  thus  preserving  harmony  in  the 
universe,  so  is  our  Head  Camp,  through  its  Head  Officers,  making 
prominent  the  sentiment  of  unity  and  fraternity  in  our  organization, 
diffusing  light  and  protection,  and  preserving  harmony  in  every  part, 
holding  the  faces  of  neighbors  always  toward  their  homes,  protecting 
each  state  organization,  composed  of  representatives  of  local  Camps 
within  its  jurisdiction,  in  the  exercise  of  their  just  powers,  always 
preserving  the  harmony  of  all. 

We  must  guard  with  untiring  energy  and  vigilance  our  organiza- 
tion ;  we  must  not  permit  imaginary  lines  to  break  the  unanimity  that 


Hi 


Selected  Literature. 


now  exists.  The  process  of  disintegration,  if  it  ever  fastens  itself  on 
our  order,  will  come  by  reason  of  recognizing  state  lines,  and  the 
adoption  of  separate  state  jurisdiction. 

We  must  cherish  and  perpetuate  our  present  form  of  organization, 
and  never  for  one  moment  entertain  a  thought  of  changing  it.  The 
wisdom  of  our  representatives  in  the  Head  Camp  assembled  at  Omaha 
is  appreciated  to  the  fullest  extent  by  the  local  Camps. 

Our  Fundamental  Laws,  as  amended,  now  provide  for  the  election 
of  delegates  from  each  local  Camp  in  the  several  states,  directing 
that  they  shall  meet  at  least  once  in  each  two  years,  at  the  state 
capital  of  their  respective  states  ;  it  also  provides  that  they  may  elect 
officers  corresponding  to  the  officers  elected  in  the  Head  Camp,  and 
in  addition  to  considering  the  good  of  the  order,  they  shall  elect  one 
delegate  at  large,  and  in  addition  thereto  one  delegate  for  each  five 
hundred  members  within  the  state,  or  major  fraction  thereof,  and  the 
alternates  for  same  to  represent  their  state  in  the  Head  Camp. 

The  Fundamental  Laws  also  provide  for  the  payment  of  expenses 
of  such  biennial  state  meetings  to  the  extent  of  mileage  and  per  diem 
of  delegates  at  the  rate  of  $2  per  day  for  one  day  for  each  delegate 
regularly  elected  and  in  attendance,  and  three  cents  per  mile  for  the 
distance  traveled  in  going  and  coming  while  in  attendance  on  said 
meeting,  the  same  to  be  paid  from  the  general  fund  of  the  order,  as 
other  claims. 

This  provision  so  wisely  incorporated  in  our  laws  enables  the 
smaller  Camps  to  have  representation  in  the  state  organization,  and 
have  their  say  in  selecting  delegates  who  shall  represent  the  state  in 
the  Head  Camp. 

The  coming  together  of  delegates  in  the  state  Camp  direct  from 
the  membership  with  whom  they  are  in  close  touch  enables  them  to 
impress  upon  those  whom  they  elect  as  delegates  to  represent  them 
in  the  Head  Camp  to  do  so  fairly  and  intelligently ;  in  this  way  the 
needs  and  wants  of  the  local  Camps  can  be  made  known  to  the  Head 
Camp  when  they  convene  to  legislate  for  the  best  interests  of  the 
order  as  a  whole. 

The  objects  to  be  gained  in  the  organization  of  state  Camps  is  the 
securing  of  a  united  effort  on  the  part  of  all  local  Camps  within  each 
state  to  increase  their  membership  and  to  promote  the  interests  of 
the  order ;  also  to  secure  the  best  possible  work,  keeping  a  faithful 
watch  upon  all  classes  of  risks,  always  giving  the  order  the  benefit  of 
all  doubts.  State  Camps  organized  with  these  objects  in  view  will 
show  their  good  work,  and  the  order  generally  will  feel  the  throb  of 
new  life  and  energy. 


I 


MinilKDrcDEflSo 


Humorous  Side  of  Fraternity. 


Life  insurance  is  a  great  thing*.  I  would  not  be  without  it.  As  a 
means  of  longevity  it  is  equal  to  the  French  duel.  My  own  health  has 
improved  since  I  got  my  nice  new  policy  with  my  name  beautifully 
underscored  with  red  ink. 

Formerly  I  used  to  have  a  seal  brown  taste  in  my  mouth  in  the 
morning.  My  mouth  tasted  like  the  dead  past.  I  also  had  that  tired 
feeling,  hot  flashes,  ringing  in  the  ear,  constant  desire  to  evade 
work,  gnawing  sensation  at  the  base  of  the  chest,  horror  of  industry, 
etc. 

But  all  that  has  passed  away.  I  am  more  hopeful,  and  even  my 
hair  looks  more  hopeful.  I  would  not  try  to  keep  house  without  life 
insurance. 

Six  years  ago  I  was  caught  up  into  heaven  —  and  returned  with 
thanks  —  by  one  of  the  most  destructive  cyclones  that  ever  visited  a 
republican  form  of  government.  A  great  deal  of  property  was  de- 
stroyed and  many  lives  lost,  but  I  was  spared.  It  created  a  great 
deal  of  dissatisfaction  in  the  community,  but  my  life  was  spared. 
People  who  had  no  insurance  were  mowed  down  on  every  hand,  but  I 
was  spared  as  a  monument  of  divine  clemency  and  mercy. 

Of  course  I  had  my  leg  broken  in  two  places,  but  I  might  have 
avoided  that  if  I  had  taken  out  an  accident  policy. 

I  look  upon  life  insurance  as  a  great  comfort,  not  only  to  the  ben- 
eficiary, but  to  the  insured,  who  very  rarely  realizes  anything  pecun- 
iary from  his  venture. 

Twice  I  have  almost  raised  my  wife  into  affluence  and  cast  a  gloom 
over  the  community  in  which  I  lived,  but  something  happened  to  the 
physician  for  a  few  days,  so  that  he  could  not  attend  to  me,  and  so  I 
recovered. 

For  nearly  two  years  I  was  under  the  care  of  a  distinguished  vet- 
erinary surgeon  of  Wyoming.  He  is  dead  now.  One  day  he  was  ill, 
and  during  a  lucid  interval  he  sent  for  another  doctor,  but  after  this 
doctor  had  gone,  my  physician,  while  delirious,  prescribed  for  him- 
ielf,  and  now  the  sage  hen  monkeys  o'er  his  lowly  tomb. 

For  two  years  he  had  his  fingers  on  my  pulse  or  in  my  pocket  aA 
the  time.  He  was  a  young  western  physician,  who  prescribed  for  me 
on  Tuesdays  and  Fridays.  The  rest  of  the  week  he  attended  to  dis- 
eases of  horses  and  children.  He  said  he  attended  me  largely  for  my 
society.  I  felt  flattered  to  know  that  he  enjoyed  my  society,  after 
associating  with  horses  all  the  week,  horses  who  had  much  greater 
advantages  than  I. 


Ivi 


Selected  Literature. 


My  wife  first  objected  seriously  to  an  insurance  on  my  life,  and 
said  she  would  never  touch  a  dollar  of  the  money  if  I  died,  but  after  I 
had  been  ill  a  few  months  and  my  disposition  had  suffered  a  good 
deal,  she  said  that  I  need  not  delay  the  obsequies  on  that  account. 

But  the  insurance  slipped  through  my  fingers  somehow,  and  I  re- 
covered. 

In  these  days  of  dynamite  and  swiftly  changing  presidential  ad- 
ministrations, and  dark  tunnels  through  which  an  engineer  goes 
groping  his  way  at  twenty-five  miles  an  hour  ;  these  day  of  tumbling 
signs  of  the  times  and  tipsy  telegraph  poles,  live  wires  and  dead  re- 
pairers; these  days  when  the  politician  and  the  deadly  bridge 
policeman  with  his  pull  lie  down  together  (under  the  influence  of  the 
same  stimulent),  these  days  when  death  lurks  in  the  air  we  breathe, 
the  earth  we  tread,  the  food  we  eat,  the  water  —  the  water  we  bathe 
in,  the  —  I  say  it  behooves  us  to  look  well  to  our  insurance  and  our 
future  state,  and  I  take  pleasure  in  hereby  certifying  and  saying  to 
those  to  whom  these  presents  shall  come  that  since  I  became  insured 
my  health  has  improved  so  much  that  it  is  a  subject  of  profound  con- 
gratulation on  my  part  and  the  deepest  disgust  on  the  part  of  those 
who  would  naturally  inherit  my  vast  wealth. 

The  Knights  of  Pythias  held  a  conclave  at  Dallas  while  I  was 
there.  I  wore  a  badge  in  order  to  be  sociable,  and  by  that  means 
learned  of  different  grips  and  signs  of  distress.  I  think  I  could  work 
my  way  into  a  lodge,  if  I  could  have  time  and  a  large  corkscrew.  In 
shaking  hands  with  many  strangers  during  the  past  year  or  two 
while  traveling  and  making  a  wide  acquaintance,  looking  to  any  acci- 
dental turn  in  affiairs  in  1892,  I  am  struck  by  the  large  and  varied 
number  of  grips  given  me  which  I  am  not  able  to  classify. 

I  would  think  that  a  man  who  belonged  to  most  all  of  the  secret 
societies  must  have  very  little  time  to  devote  to  his  business  after 
successfully  remembering  all  the  grips,  signs,  passwords,  explana- 
tions, signals,  rituals,  work  of  degrees,  constitution,  by-laws,  reports 
of  committees,  initiations,  communications,  and  new  business,  good  of 
the  order,  violations  of  obligations,  opening  odes,  manual  of  arms, 
laying  of  corner-stones,  and  funeral  service.  If  I  had  all  these  in  my 
head  I  could  just  about  remember  the  combination  of  my  safe,  but  I 
would  not  be  mentally  adequate  to  anything  further  than  that.  If  it 
rained  some  good  friend  who  had  my  best  interest  at  heart  would 
probably  have  to  take  me  by  the  hand  and  bring  me  in. — BiU  Nye. 


When  Mr.  Pigeon  came  home  }ast  evening  the  first  thing  he  said 
to  bis  wife  was  : 

"  Mary,  I  have  joined  the  Knights  of  Labor." 

She  glared  at  him  with  an  expression  that  set  his  teeth  on  edge 
as  She  cried : 


Selected  Literature. 


Ivii 


"A  Knight  of  Labor,  eh!  You'll  make  a  sweet  old  Knight  of 
Labor." 

"Why  Mary,  its  a  noble  organization,  and — " 

"Yes,  I  know  it  is  ;  and  now  I  suppose  you'll  be  a  walking  dele- 
gate, or  chairman  of  the  committee  on  boycotting,  while  I'm  hustling 
around  in  the  back  yard  trying  to  rake  up  enough  wood  to  build  a  fire. 
I  know  you.  Pigeon ;  in  my  mind's  eye  I  see  you  addressing  a  large 
and  enthusiastic  audience,  and  telling  your  brethren  in  toil  to  shake 
off  the  giant  grasp  of  monopoly  that  is  crushing  the  life-blood  from 
them ;  but  you  don't  tell  them  how  your  wife  is  down  in  the  cellar 
wrestling  with  a  barrel  of  apples,  or  trying  to  plug  up  a  hole  in  the 
stove-pipe  with  a  piece  of  carpet.  I  can  imagine  you  filling  the  air 
with  eloquence  about  the  horny  hand  of  the  workingman,  and  an 
injury  to  all  being  the  concern  to  one  ;  but  I  can't  fancy  you  nailing  a 
few  shingles  on  the  roof  to  keep  the  water  from  soaking  the  flour 
barrels.  I  want  you  to  understand,  John  Henry,  that  you  have 
joined  enough  orders  already.  You  are  High  Key  Bearer  of  the 
Knights  of  Rest,  Past  Grand  Chieftain  of  the  Royal  Order  of  Free 
Lunch  Hunters,  Supreme  Chancellor  of  the  Ancient  Order  of  Dog- 
Catchers,  and  I  don't  know  what  else.  I  have  seen  you  carrying  ban- 
ners, and  drilling,  and  attending  conventions  until  my  soul  is  weary  ; 
and  unless  you  stay  at  home  and  act  as  Right  Worthy  Grand  Coal  Car- 
rier and  Wood  Sawyer,  you  will  think  you  are  married  to  an  equinoc- 
tial cyclone.  Just  drop  that  book  of  constitution  and  by-laws,  and  trot 
down  to  the  butcher's  for  a  few  ribs,  or  there  will  be  a  dozen  lodges 
in  mourning  to-morrow,  and  somebody  else  will  be  Grand  Key- 
Bearer." 

And  Mr.  Pigeon  smiled  in  a  husky  voice  and  obeyed. 


A  Tale  of  Woe. 


The  Marion  and  Cedar  Rapids  papers  have  been  poking  fun  at  one 
Colonel  Van  Duzen,  and  here  is  an  example  : 

He  represents  nearly  every  company  in  the  world,  and  does  his 
soliciting  in  a  subdued  tone  of  voice,  seldom  talking  above  a  whisper. 
He  usually  strikes  an  attitude  with  his  eyes  resting  on  your  collar- 
button,  evidently  hoping  to  sever  a  jugular  unless  the  patient  suc- 
cumbs. The  other  day,  however,  the  Colonel  got  left.  He  started  to 
cross  First  Avenue  bridge,  and  it  being  a  little  dark  he  could  not  dis- 
cern objects  readily.  One  of  the  heavy  posts  that  stands  alone  near 
the  bridge  was  mistaken  by  him  for  a  man,  and  he  never  waits  for  an 
introduction  when  he  sees  a  gentleman  whom  he  thinks  might  be  pos- 
sibly induced  to  take  a  policy.   §o  h§  tackled  the  post,  and  fired  off 


Iviii 


Selected  Literature. 


his  two-hours-fever-heat  speech  at  it,  not  discovering-  his  mistake  un- 
til the  bark  beg-an  to  peel  off,  and  he  attempted  to  pick  it  up,  thirfk- 
ing  the  man  was  giving  him  some  "cast-off  clothing  "  for  insurance. 
The  following  is  said  to  be  a  synopsis  of  the  speech  that  did  the  "busi- 
ness : 

*'Good  evening,  my  friend  ;  can't  I' write  you  up  for  a  few  thousand 
to-day?  (Softly.)  I  can  give  you  any  kind  of  insurance  you  want, 
and  any  time  you  are  dissatisfied  I  can  change  you  into  another  com- 
pany without  any  further  expense.  *l  can  give  you  a  policy  so  that 
you  can  draw  $1,000  at  the  end  of  ten  years  if  you  should  survive  a 
few  minutes  longer.  In  case  you  should  not  live  that  long  —  ten 
years  —  you  would  get  $2,500,  or  as  much  as  you  would  wish  to  carry 
on  your  life.  I  carry  on  my  own  life  $25,000,  and  I  hope  to  be  able  in 
a  few  months  to  carry  additional  insurance.  I  carry  more  than  a 
great  many  do  who  are  able  to  carry  more  than  I  do.  Let  me  write 
you  up.  The  expense  is  trifling,  and  if  you  don't  want  to  pay  the 
amount  in  money,  perhaps  you  have  got  some  old  cast-off  clothing,  an 
old  watch,  revolver,  shovel  plows,  broken-down  wagons,  odd  wheels 
to  a  wagon,  or  mules  that  you  can't  use  yourself,  or  something  of  that 
kind  which  you  would  be  willing  to  give  me  for  a  policy.  I  have  a 
large  farm  near  town,  and  still  have  a  little  room  left  where  I  could 
keep  these  things.  Hadn't  you  better  let  me  write  you  up  ?  Perhaps 
you  have  an  aged  parent  or  some  old  friend,  I  can  insure  their  lives 
and  give  you  the  benefit.  I  can  write  as  high  as  $10,000  on  an  aged 
person.  You  need  no  medical  examination.  If  they  should  survive 
thirty  days  you  would  be  entitled  to  your  benefit.  And,  again,  if  you 
have  a  friend,  not  living,  but  who  has  been  dead  not  over  thirty  days 
and  is  in  a  fair  state  of  preservation,  you  can  secure  a  policy  in  my 
company  with  a  trifling  additional  expense.  I  have  here  the  circulars 
of  nearly  every  country  in  the  world.  Here  is  a  circular  of  a  Waterloo 
company,  and  here  is  a  bundle  of  papers  of  our  old  people's  company. 
Then  here  is  a  bundle  of  papers  showing  how  you  can  get  a  big  thing 
in  a  Toledo  company,  and  I  will  give  you  some  circulars  in  regard  to 
the  companies  at  Kansas  City,  Des  Moines,  Council  Bluffs,  Burling- 
ton, and  I  also  represent  several  other  companies.  If  you  don't  care 
for  any  of  my  old  insurance  on  an  aged  person,  I  can  give  you  a  policy 
on  an  infant,  if  it  has  been  named.  In  fact,  I  can  accommodate  you 
with  most  any  kind  of  insurance  you  want,  and  I  have  references  for 
each  company,  showing  that  they  are  all  perfectly  reliable.  Can't 
you  come  to  my  room  ?  I"  have  more  circulars  there,  and  some  blank 
applications,  and  I  can  write  you  up  in  just  a  few  minutes.  Are  you 
very  busy  ?   I  can  ca'U  again  just  as  well.    When  will  you  be  in  ?  " 

No  response  coming  from  his  victim,  he  waited  a  moment  until 
the  bark  began  to  peel,  when  he  discovered  his  mistake  and  fled. 


Selected  Literature. 


lix 


The  Countersign, 


He  wa8  a  bearded  man  and  his  breath  was  redolent  with  cloves  and 
gin.  Upon  a  time  he  had  endeavored  to  train  his  hair  into  a  pompa- 
dour, and  partially  succeeded,  but  only  partially,  for  one-half  stood 
up  like  undying  truth,  while  the  rest  pointed  in  all  directions  of  the 
marine  compass.  He  wore  a  winning  smile  and  evidently  intended  to 
capture  his  honor  with  a  glance.  But  his  honor  wasn't  to  be  capti- 
vated, and  the  prisoner  soon  found  it  out.  Then  he  started  off  on  a 
new  tack.  Laying  down  his  hat  softly,  he  slowly  elevated  his  right 
hand  to  his  ear  and  bowed  three  times  solemnly.  Then  he  laid  his 
left  hand  on  his  stomach  and  his  right  hand  on  his  head,  and  began 
working  them  circularly.  His  honor  put  on  his  glasses  and  looked 
down  solemnly  at  the  prisoner.  That  individual  stepped  bac*k  three 
paces,  three  more  to  the  left,  and  back  again,  describing  a  triangle. 
In  a  low  voice  he  whispered  :  "  Brother,  do  you  recognize  the  hail- 
ing sign  ?  " 

His  honor  nodded  and  turned  over  a  leaf  on  the  docket.  The  man 
at  the  bar  then  tapped  his  forehead  three  times  and  elevated  his  arm 
over  his  head,  saying  : 

"The  signal  of  distress,  brother." 

The  court  merely  nodded. 

"  It  will  be  all  right  then  ?  "  cheerily  asked  the  prisoner.  "  I  sup- 
pose I  can  go.  And  say,  brother,  can't  you  advance  a  brother  50  cents 
to  relieve  his  immediate  necessities  V  " 

His  honor  took  off  his  glasses  and  said :  "  Mr.  Beebee,  I  recognize 
your  signals,  etc. ,  but  I  can  not  for  the  life  of  me  recollect  the  order. 
So  many,  you  know. " 

"I  am  surprised,  brother,  greatly  surprised,"  remarked  the 
prisoner.  "I  never  knew  a  candidate  who  forgot  his  initiation  into 
the  United  Order  of  Benevolent  Sons  of  Good  Fellowship  of  the 
Temple  of  Solomon,"  and  he  gave  the  hailing  sign  with  embellish- 
ments. 

"  Ah,  yes,  I  had  it  mixed  up  with  the  Ancient  Order  of  Old  Billy- 
Goats,"  exclaimed  his  honor.  "  Do  you  recognize  this  sign,  brother  ?  " 
and  he  dipped  his  pen  in  the  red  ink  and  held  it  up. 

"It  isn't  in  the  ritual,  is  it  ?"  asked  the  prisoner  as  he  rubbed  his 
head. 

"  It  means,  Mr.  Beebee,  that  the  court  has  dropped  onto  your  little 
racket,  "  sternly  replied  his  honor.  Then  picking  up  a  blotter  he 
waved  it  in  a  circle  and  said  :    "  Does  this  sign  seem  familiar  to  you  ?  " 

"Don't  recollect  it,"  meekly  replied  the  accused. 

"  Well,  as  I  interpret  it,  it  means  that  you  get  three  months. 
Now,  give  the  parting  sign  to  the  Most  Worthy  Tiler  and  Master  of 
the  Guard  at  the  door  and  pass  down,"  and  his  honor  waved  his  pen 


Ix 


Selected  Literature. 


and  blotter  together,  and  John  Agamemnon  Beebee  was  seized  by 
Deputy  Thornton  and  hustled  down  stairs.  There  he  told  the  old 
soldier  that  the  villain  upstairs  would  be  assassinated  by  the  avenging 
angel  of  the  United  Order  of  Benevolent  Sons  of  Good  Fellowship  of 
the  Temple  of  Solomon,  Chapter  9,  Encampment  of  the  Mississippi 
Valley.—  Tlie  Frater. 


Advice  to  Smart  Alecks. 


Always  go  late  ;  thus  you  will  avoid  filling  any  vacant  office,  and 
will  not  have  so  long  to  stay. 

If  the  Camp  is  "just  opening,"  and  you  can  not  be  admitted  at  once, 
keep  knocking  or  ringing  the  bell,  if  there  be  one,  so  the  sentry  may 
not  fall  asleep. 

When  you  get  into  the  ante-room,  ply  the  watchman  with  all 
manner  of  questions  as  to  who  is  in  the  Camp-hall,  what  they  are 
doing,  etc.,  and  the  louder  this  is  done  the  better,  as  he  may  be  deaf. 

If  there  is  a  brass  knocker  on  the  inner  door  be  sure  to  "  hit  'er 
hard  "  so  that  all  may  know  you  are  coming.  If  there  is  no  knocker, 
use  your  fist. 

When  the  inner  door  is  opened,  walk  in  boldly  with  your  hat  on, 
to  show  your  independence.  If  you  have  a  "  snipe  "  in  your  fingers 
take  it  along  and  leave  it  on  a  desk,  pedestal,  or  window  sill,  so  the 
janitor  will  remember  you  "  when  you  are  gone." 

After  gaining  admission  to  the  hall,  a  remark  addressed  to  some 
neighbor  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  room  will  have  the  effect  of  di- 
recting attention  to  yourself,  and  strangers  present  may  thus  be 
induced  to  inquire  "  who  is  that  man  ?  " 

Before  taking  your  seat,  go  direct  to  the  Clerk's  desk  ;  that  officer 
may  want  to  see  you.  If  he  is  very  busy  you  can  overhaul  his  books 
and  papers  until  you  attract  his  attention.  Then  ask  him  to  see  how 
you  stand  ;  when  the  term  will  end  ;  when  the  notices  will  be  out ; 
how  many  are  on  the  sick-list ;  if  your  neighbor  paid  in  $1.00  last 
month  ;  how  many  were  suspended  last  term,  etc.,  you  have  a  right  to 
know. 

If  the  Consul  is  young  and  inexperienced,  you  can  gain  notoriety 
and  have  some  fun  by  asking  perplexing  questions,  raising  points  of 
order,  appealing  from  his  decision,  etc.  If  you  can  get  him  "  rattled  " 
he  will  always  miss  you  when  you  are  absent. 

When  the  Consul  is  instructing  the  candidates  you  can  tramp 
round  the  room,  talking  to  this  one  or  that  one,  or  get  a  few  in  the 
ante-room  and  crack  jokes.  A  restless  neighbor  will  be  much  en- 
couraged thereby. 


Selected  Literature, 


Ixi 


Always  remember  that  tedious  sessions  are  generally  tiresome  and 
should  be  avoided.  To  this  end  keep  urging  the  officers  to  "  hurry 
up  and  let  us  get  out  of  this  !  "  After  Camp  is  closed  you  can  light  a 
cigar,  (if  you  have  one)  and  stand  around  and  talk  for  an  hour.  The 
janitor  won't  care. 

If  you  have  not  succeeded  in  "  making  your  mark  "  in  the  Camp 
you  can  spit  on  the  stairs  as  you  go  out.  Mahogany  is  a  nice  color  for 
stairs,  anyhow. — Exchange. 


Modesty. —  The  other  night  a  policeman  observed  a  man  hanging 
around  the  entrance  to  a  Michigan  Avenue  hall  in  a  queer  sort  of 
way,  and  he  asked  him  if  he  belonged  to  the  order  in  session  up- 
stairs.   The  man  replied  that  he  did,  and  the  officer  inquired  . 

"  Then  why  don't  you  go  up  ?  " 

"  Well,  I  was  thinking  of  it." 
Haven't  been  expelled,  have  you  ?  " 

"No." 

"  And  you  haven't  lost  your  interest  have  you  ?  " 
"No." 

"  Aren't  afraid  of  anybody  ?  " 
"No." 

"  Well,  what  ?  " 

"I  might  as  well  tell  you,"  said  the  man,  after  beating  around  a 
while  longer,  "I  went  down  to  Toledo  a  few  days  ago,  and  somehow 
the  story  came  back  here  that  I  was  drowned.  My  lodge  thereupon 
passed  resolutions  to  the  effect  that  I  was  honest,  upright,  and  lib- 
eral, and  a  shining  ornament  ;  that  what  was  its  loss  was  my  gain.  I 
wasn't  drowned,  as  you  see,  but  I  kind  o'  hate  to  walk  in  on  'em  and 
bust  those  resolutions.  I've  tried  it  three  times  and  can't  get  higher 
than  the  fifth  stair  before  I  weaken." — Detroit  Free  Press. 


Got  the  Password, 


"And  so,  my  dear,"  said  Mr.  Billings,  as  he  glanced  over  the 
morning  paper,  "you  ladies  have  at  last  organized  a  lodge  of  your 
own  ?  " 

"  Yes,  indeed,  we  have ;  and  we  will  show  you  lords  of  creation 
that  we  can  run  such  an  institution  and  keep  our  secrets  as  well  as 
you  can,"  said  Mrs.  B. 

' '  I  suppose  you  have  a  password  and  grip,  and  all  that  sort  of  thing. 
It  would  be  too  funny  for  anything  if  some  of  you  would  forget  and 


Ixii 


Selected  Literature. 


give  the  whole  thing"  away.  I  know,  of  course,  you  would  not  do  it, 
but  you  would  not  object  to  telling  your  own  husband  the  password  •, 
you  surely  can  trust  me  that  far,"  and  Mr.  B.  held  his  paper  up  before 
his  face  to  hide  the  smile  he  could  not  suppress. 

''  Well,  hubby,"  said  Mrs.  B.  (and  she,  too,  looked  very  smiling), 
"If  you  put  it  in  that  light  I  shall  have  to  tell  you,  but  you  must 
never  repeat  it.    It  is  :    "I  was  a  stranger,  and  ye  took  me  in.'  " 

"  But  isn't  that  rather  a  strange  password  ?  "  queried  Mr.  B. 

"Well,  it  may  be;  but  then  everything  about  our  society  is 
strange,"  answered  she. 

The  next  Wednesday  night  was  lodge  meeting,  and  Mr.  Billings 
said  he  guessed  he  would  not  go  down  town  that  evening,  as  he  was 
feeling  poorly,  but  would  stay  at  home  and  read  his  paper.  So  Mrs. 
B.  left  him  cozily  reading  and  went  to  the  lodge.  But  no  sooner  was 
she  gone  than  he  commenced  rumaging  through  the  closets  and 
drawers,  and  in  the  course  of  half  an  hour  had  changed  himself  into 
what  might  be  taken  for  quite  a  respectable  female.  As  he  was  a 
small  man  (in  more  than  one  sense  of  the  word),  his  wife's  clothing 
were  not  a  bad  fit.  Laughing  at  the  anticipated  fun,  he  was  soon  at 
the  lodge-room,  and,  giving  the  password,  was  ushered  in.  But  he 
was  hardly  inside  the  door  ere  he  was  seized,  blind-folded,  and  rushed 
up  a  plank,  then  tilted  from  the  end,  lighting  on  something  decidedly 
moist.  Before  he  could  regain  his  feet,  some  one  thrust  a  lump  of  ice 
down  his  back,  and  at  the  same  time  the  bald  spot  on  his  head  was 
deluged  with  water  ;  then,  after  mopping  him  around  the  floor  two  or 
three  times,  he  was  thrust  out  of  the  door  with  the  advice  :  "There, 
you  prying  old  baldhead,  if  any  one  asks  you  what  the  password  is, 
you  just  tell  them,  'I  was  a  stranger,  and  ye  took  me  in.'  "  But  he 
had  hardly  reached  the  street  before  a  policeman,  from  his  disheveled 
appearance,  taking  him  for  a  female  tramp,  promptly  took  him  to  the 
lock-up.  Mrs.  B.  says  she  guesses  Billy  will  begin  to  make  up  his 
mind  that  she  can  keep  secrets,  and  that  she  isn't  as  green  as  she 
looks.  But  if  you  want  to  see  just  how  wicked  a  man  can  be,  say  to 
Mr.  B. :    "I  was  a  stranger,  and  ye  took  me  in. " —  Exchange. 


A  BEAUTIFUL,  and  bashful  young  woman  of  nineteen  summers 
called  recently  at  the  office  of  a  life  insurance  agent,  and  asked  him 
timidly  if  he  could  tell  her  how  long  people  of  a  certain  age  would 
live. 

"  Madam,"  replied  the  agent,  coughing  respectfully  behind  a  pros- 
pectus, and  drawing  his  chair  near  to  her,  "  here  are  our  tables  of  ex- 
pectation and  average  mortality,  which  contain  all  the  information 
upon  the  subject  that  you  can  desire." 

"Well,"  said  she,  "how  long  will  a  man  of  sixty-seven,  and  who 
can  eat  peas  with  his  knife,  live  ?  " 


Selected  Literature. 


Ixiii 


"According'  to  our  table,  madam,"  replied  the  agent,  ''he  should, 
on  the  average,  survive  eleven  years,  three  months,  and  sixteen  days." 
That  would  be  till  the  21st  of  April,  1896,"  replied  the  visitor. 

"Precisely,  madam,  on  the  average  expectation  of  mortality,  for 
we  must  alt  die,  and  it  is,  therefore,  well  to  insure  against  loss  to  the 
loved  ones  in  a  company  whose  character — " 

"And  how  much  could  I  insure  his  life  for  ?  " 

"Oh,  for  any  amount  —  say  $10,000!  "he  answered,  taking  up  a 
blank  form  of  application.  "Let  me  recommend  the  unexpected  ad- 
vantages offered  by  our  non-forfeitable  endowment  policy." 

"Well,"  said  the  young  woman,  "I  think,  then,  that  I'll  marry 
him." 

"  Insure  him  you  mean,"  corrected  the  agent. 

"  Marry  him  ;  you  insure  him.  You  see,"  she  added,  with  a  burst 
of  confidence,  "I  love  Herbert,  and  Mr.  Dawkins  is  old  enough  to  be 
my  grandfather.  But  Herbert  is  poor,  and  I  just  worship  the  corner 
lots  that  Mr.  Dawkins  builds  on.  And  Herbert  is  very  patient,  and 
says  that  if  I  will  only  fix  a  day  —  no  matter  how  long  he  will  have  to 
wait — he  will  be  happy.  And  now,  you  say  Mr.  Dawkins  will  die  by 
the  21st  of  April,  1896 ;  and  as  it  wouldn't  be  decent  to  marry  again  till 
I've  been  a  year  in  mourning,  I'll  arrange  to  marry  Herbert  on  the 
22d  of  April,  1897,  and  if  Mr.  Dawkins  doesn't  die  by  then  you'll  give 
me  $10,000.  Oh,  thank  you,"  and  with  a  deep  bow  she  swept  out  of 
the  office. —  New  York  Telegram. 


Bluf&ng  an  Agent, 


He  was  an  old  man,  and  said  he'd  seen  better  times.  I  hoped  he 
had  ;  but  as  I  was  unusually  busy  and  didn't  want  any  life  insurance, 
if  he'd  excuse  me  — 

"Oh,  yes,"  said  he.  "  All  right,  young  man,  I'll  drop  in  again." 
The  next  day  he  did  "  drop  in,"  and  sitting  down  on  my  desk,  began  : 

"  Nothing  in  the  world,  my  young  friend,  will  pay  so  big  a  per 
cent  on  so  little  money  invested  as  a  policy  in  the  Mutual  Benefit  As- 
sociation, the  most  reliable  and  the  only  solid  company  on  earth, 
capital  over  seven  millions,  and  so  prompt  —  why,  I  insured  a  man 
last  week  for  $10,000,  and  the  same  day  he  was  run  over  by  a  street 
car,  so  when  I  sent  in  the  policy  and  premium,  I  just  said,  by  way  of 
P.  S.,  'run  over  by  a  horse  car  not  an  hour  after  issued  ;  better  send 
on  check  as  he  can't  live  ;  both  legs  cut  off.'  The  very  next  day  I  got 
a  check  payable  to  his  heirs  for  $10,560.  Dividend,  my  friend,  was 
more  than  the  premium,  and  don't  you  call  this  prompt  ?  That  man's 
widow  got  this  check  before  he  had  been  dead  fifteen  minutes." 


Ixiv 


Selected  Literature. 


"  But,"  said  I,  "  I  have  no  wife,  and  do  not  want  any  life  insurance, 
I  tell  you." 

"  The  investment,  my  young-  friend,  the  investment.  Look  at  the 
dividend.  This  may  get  you  $560  in  one  hour,  you  might  say,  and 
then  you  might  have  a  wife  some  day.  Now,  you  do  want  a  policy  in 
this  company,  I  know  you  do.  I'm  an  old  man  ;  have  had  large  and 
valued  experience,  and  I  know  you  are  just  aching  for  one  of  these 
policies  ;  only  you  are  so  extremely  modest.  Now  I'll  just  make  out 
your  application ;  it  will  only  cost  you  —  let  me  see.  How  old  are 
you  ?  " 

Twenty-six,  but — " 

"Twenty-six  —  hum.  Father  living?  How  old  was  he  when  he 
died  ?  " 

"  Just  twenty-seven  years  old." 

"  Twenty-seven,  hey  ?  What  did  he  die  of  ?  Accident,  I  pre- 
sume ?  " 

"  No,  sir;  consumption." 

"  Consumption  ?   You  don't  look  consumptive." 

"  But  I  am  consumptive,  and — " 

*'  Mother's  living,  I  doubt  not  ?  " 

"  No,  sir  ;  she  died  at  twenty-eight." 

"  What  was  the  cause  of  her  heath  ?  " 

"Insanity,  sir  —  hereditary  insanity;  family's  full  of  it.  All  my 
brothers,  thirteen  of  us  in  ail,  died  between  twenty-four  and  twenty- 
eight,  of  the  same  disease.  Dangerous,  too,  some  of  them  ;  my  oldest 
brother  was  taken  about  this  time  one  day;  he  killed  his  partner, 
bookkeeper,  three  clerks,  and  fourteen  customers  before  they  could 
secure  him  — " 

"  You  don't  tell  me  !  This  is  wonderful.  You  look  like  a  strong, 
healthy  man,  likely  to  live  fifty  years.    Were  you  ever  sick  ?  " 

"  Oh,  yes  ;  I've  had  inflammatory  rheumatism,  pneumonia,  small' 
pox,  dysentery,  mumps,  liver  complaint,  fits,  corns,  and  — " 

"  Good  heavens  !  And  you  want  me  to  insure  your  life  !  Well, 
my  company  is  a  good  company,  willing  to  take  an  ordinary  business 
risk,  but  I  must  say  I  never  knew  them  to  insure  a  corpse.  I'd  like 
to  accommodate  you,  my  young  man  ;  you  seem  aaxious  about  it ;  I 
feel  interested  in  your  family  ;  but  our  surgeon  wouldn't  pass  such  an 
examination.    Good  day." — Unidentified. 


He  Got  the  Password.— This  happened  in  a  little  town  in 
southern  Illinois,  not  many  days  ago.  It  is  in  a  section  where  the 
Farmers'  Alliance  is  strong,  and  a  lodge  of  that  organization  exists 
in  the  town.  They  meet  Monday  nights.  There  is  only  one  lodge- 
room  in  the  town,  and  Tuesday  nights  it  is  occupied  by  the  local 
branch  of  the  Knights  of  Pythias.    The  president  of  the  sub-alliance 


Selected  Literature. 


Ixv 


came  to  town  one  Tuesday.  He  had  visited  the  town  alliance,  and 
when  he  saw  lights  in  the  lodge-room  concluded  that  he  would  go 
over  and  see  the  brethren.  He  gave  the  proper  knock  at  the  outer 
door.  The  wicket  was  raised  and  an  ear  was  placed  at  it  to  hear  the 
password.  "I  plow  —  I  hoe  —  I  spade,"  whispered  the  alliance  man. 
The  ear  was  replaced  by  an  eye,  and  in  turn  gave  place  to  a  mouth 
which  whispered  in  reply:  ''The  h— 1  you  do  !  "  and  the  wicket 
dropped  with  a  bang.  The  indignant  farmer  shortly  after  met  a 
"brother  "  to  whom  he  told  his  tale  of  woe.  "  Why  dad  blame  it," 
was  the  sharp  comment  of  the  brother,  "them's  Knights  of  Pythias, 
and  you've  given 'm  our  password."  "Dogged  if  I  hain't,"  was  the 
response,  "but  (brightening  up),  durn  'em,  I've  got  theirs." — N'ew 
Yorh  Herald. 


Afraid  He  Wouldn^t  Pass. 


He  was  a  man  well  along  in  middle  age,  and  was  willing  to  be  in- 
sured. The  agent  had  prepared  his  "  application,"  and  turned  him 
over  to  the  searching  scrutiny  of  the  accomplished  medical  examiner. 

"  I  might  as  well  tell  you,  doctor,  to  begin  with,  that  ours  has  been 
a  family  of  fatalities  and  sudden  deaths,"  said  the  applicant. 

The  examiner  looked  serious  as  he  replied  :' 

"Why  you  seem  to  be  in  excellent  physical  conditioa.    What  did 
your  father  die  of  ?  " 
"Heart  disease." 

"  That's  bad.    How  old  was  he  ?  " 

"Ninety-two." 

"  Um  !    And  your  mother  ?  " 

"  She's  gone,  too.    Killed  at  a  crossing." 

"  And  her  age  ?  " 

" Mother  was  a  little  over  seventy." 

"  Do  you  know  the  age  and  cause  of  your  grandfathers'  deaths  ?  " 
continued  the  examiner. 

"Yes,  indeed.  Father's  father  died  just  a  week  after  his  ninetieth 
birthday.  They  said  he  used  too  much  tobacco.  Mother's  father  was 
only  eighty-eight.    Falling  down  stairs  finished  him. " 

"And  your  grandmothers  ?  " 

"One  of  'em  had  consumption  at  eighty-six,  and  died  in  no  time. 
The  other  was  nipped  by  sunstroke  at  eighty-four.  Oh,  they  all  went 
quick." 

The  examiner  did  not  look  so  grave  as  he  asked  : 
"Have  you  any  brothers  or  sisters  ?  " 

"  One  sister  and  two  brothers,"  was  the  answer.  "  John  went  out 
into  the  mining  country  when  he  was  seventy -two  ;  got  in  there,  called 


d 


Ixvi 


Stlected  Literature. 


a  drunken  man  a  liar,  and  was  shot.  Henry  was  drowned  at  sixty- 
nine  trying  to  save  two  young  fellows  that  couldn't  swim.  Sister's 
alive.  She's  awfully  careless  ;  ate  a  lot  of  green  stuff  the  day  of  her 
golden  wedding  ;  then  danced  in  the  evening  with  all  the  old  fellows 
out  on  the  lawn  even  after  it  was  raining ;  took  her  two  days  to  get 
over  it.    She'll  go  in  a  hurry,  like  all  the  rest,  some  of  these  times." 

Well,"  said  the  medical  man  smiling,  "I  think  I'll  chance  you, 
and  don't  believe  your  application  will  be  '  turned  down  '  at  the  home 
office.  Only  you  must  look  out  for  yourself.  Be  careful  about  catch- 
ing hard  colds  after  you  are  eighty  years  old. —  Chicago  Evening  Post. 


The  Insurance  Agent, 


"Here  again  ?  "  groaned  the  merchant. 

"  Here  again  !  "  hissed  the  insurance  agent,  with  a  gleeful  glare. 

"Now  let  me  show  you  our  new  tables  of  patent  adjustable  com- 
pound interest-bearing  tontine  —  " 

"  As  I  have  told  you  —  h'm  —  let  me  see —  " 

"Yes,  I  know  ;  eight  hundred  and  forty-one  times  before." 

"As  I  have  told  you  eight  hundred  and  forty-one  times  before,  I 
am  insured  already,  and  am  crippling  my  creditors  to  keep  the  pre- 
mium paid  up.    I  cannot  afford  to  insure  in  another  company." 

"  You  can.    You  must.    You  shall  !  " 

"  Really,  sir,  the  adoption  of  this  lone  in  my  own  office  —  " 
"Makes  you  think  you  will  insure  after  all." 
"  No." 

"You  may  as  well  give  in.    From  my  boyhood  I  have  held  as  my 
motto  :    '  Persistency  is  always  rewarded.'  " 
"  And  you  intend  to  persist  ?  " 

"  I  shall  visit  you  every  day  until  our  company  writes  a  policy  for 
you." 

The  merchant  bowed  his  head  and  furtively  brushed  away  a  tear. 
"  Believe  me,"  he  said,  "  I  appreciate  your  efforts,  but  may  it  not  be 
that  tv70  people  can  be  persistent  ?  There  was  once  a  bald-headed 
man  —  the  fact  that  your  cheek  has  spread  up  into  your  scalp  put  me 
in  mind  of  this  incident  —  who  suffered  greatly  from  flies.  One  day  a 
large  blue-bottle  alighted  on  his  crown  and  began  to  tickle  him.  He 
drove  him  away,  but  the  fly,  saying  to  himself,  '  persistency  is  always 
rewarded,'  returned.  Again  and  again  he  was  driven  off,  and  again 
and  again  he  returned.  Finally  the  bald  man  allowed  him  to  settle 
and  get  a  firm  hold,  when  he  cautiously  raised  his  hand  and  —  pardon 
me  there  are  flies  on  you."  And,  rushing  on  the  agent  with  a  club, 
he  dealt  him  a  dozen  terrific  blows  on  the  head,  then  fell  into  his  chair 
with  a  sigh  of  relief. 


Selected  Literature, 


Ixvii 


"  Thanks  !  "  said  the  agent,  who  had  been  sunk  in  thought.  And 
did  the  man  kill  the  fly  ?  " 

"He  did,"  replied  the  merchant. 

"  Ah  !  Perhaps  some  day  you  intend  to  put  this  parable  into 
practice  ?" 

"I  confess,  I  did  intend." 

"  In  that  case  maybe  I'd  better  keep  away  ;  but  before  I  go  let  me 
take  your  application  — — ."  —  Puck, 


The  story  is  reported  of  a  lawyer  who  had  been  the  victim  of  an 
accident.  It  is  thus  told  by  some  jolly  scribes  to  one  of  our  neigh- 
bors :  "This  limb  of  the  law  signed  an  application  for  indemnity  as  a 
policy-holder,  and  attached  thereto  his  seal  as  a  notary,  before  whom 
the  claim  was  sworn  to  ;  he  signed  as  witness,  and  gave  bis  personal 
certificate  as  to  the  injury,  and  capped  the  climax  by  stating  that  he 
was  personally  cognizant  that  the  claimant  had  been  unable  to  transact 
his  business  in  the  courts." 

"  Did  he  get  the  claim  ?"' 

"  Well,  no  ;  the  company  thought  the  cause  of  the  accident  was 
too  thin." 

"  What  was  it  ?  " 

"  He  claimed  to  have  sprained  his  right  wrist  while  spreading 
his  coat  tails  apart  preparatory  to  sitting  down.,' 

It  was  morning  in  sheol,  and  a  number  of  unfortunates  were 
gathered  around  one  of  the  fires  waiting  for  the  daily  toasting  to 
begin.  They  were  gloomily  beguiling  the  time  by  recounting  the 
various  misdeeds  done  on  earth  which  had  led  to  their  deserved 
eternal  condemnation.  One  had  wrecked  a  savings  bank,  another  had 
stolen  from  blind  beggars,  and  a  third  had  betrayed  the  trust  of  a 
dead  friend  by  filching  the  estate  he  had  been  deputed  to  manage. 
The  whole  gamut  of  things  done  and  undone  which  had  brought  un- 
merited woe  to  others  was  run  up  and  down,  and  sins  of  every  hue, 
cardinal  included,  were  represented  in  that  unhappy  company. 
Finally  one  exceptionally  miserable  victim,  who  had  been  noticed  as 
the  regular  recipient  of  extra  broilings  at  the  hands  of  the  most  ac- 
tive imps,  said:  "Gentlemen,  you  think  you  were  bad,  and  from 
your  histories  I  judge  you  all  belong  here  fast  enough,  but  I  am  un- 
doubtedly the  worst  of  the  lot.  I  am  one  of  those  wretches  who  re- 
fused, while  in  the  body,  to  insure  my  life.  I  died  suddenly  and  left 
a  devoted  family  to  the  pangs  of  penury.  I  wouldn't  take  a  life  policy, 
and  now  you  see  me  unable  to  obtain  even  fire  insurance."  A  thrill 
of  horror  ran  through  the  party,  and,  seared  in  sin  though  they 
were,  they  instinctively  drew  in  aversion  away  from  such  an  offender. 
—  Chicago  Herald. 


Ixviii 


Selected  Literature. 


"When  I  lived  in  Kansas,"  said  a  Detroiter,  who  was  tellings 
stories  in  an  insurance  office  a  few  days  ago,  "I  insured  my  house 
with  an  agent  against  fire.  Along  came  another  agent  who  insured 
against  lightning,  and  I  took  that  in.  In  a  few  days  a  chap  called  on 
me  who  insured  against  cyclones,  and  I  struck  a  bargain  with  him. 
The  next  caller  insured  against  waterspouts  and  explosions,  and  I 
thought  I  might  as  well  encourage  him." 

"  A  house  couldn't  be  much  safer  than  that,"  remarked  one  of  the 
listeners. 

"And  yet  I  lost  it  inside  of  six  months." 
''How  could  that  be?" 

"  Well,  there  came  a  freshet  in  the  river,  and  house,  barn,  fences, 
haystacks,  and  all  went  sailing  down  stream.  The  agent  who  insured 
against  freshets  got  there  just  one  day  too  late." — Detroit  Free  Press. 

"  No,  Mr.  Smith  is  not  in,  unfortunately.  Do  you  know,  sir,  it  is 
very  kind  to  call  so  often  ?  I  trust  that  in  time  you  will  bring  my 
husband  to  a  realizing  sense  of  his  condition." 

"  I  certainly  trust  I  shall." 

"  Where  do  you  preach  next  Sunday  ?  I  shall  endeavor  to  get  Mr. 
Smith  to  go  and  hear  you." 

''  Madam,  there  seems  to  be  some  mistake  here.  I'm  not  a  min- 
ister, but  an  insurance  agent.  I'm  in  the  life  business  ;  have  nothing 
to  do  with  fire  risks,  madam." 

Thought  They  Were  Signs  of  Distress.— "  Bub,"  said  a 
stranger  who  lived  across  the  street,  ''is  your  father  a  Mason  ?  " 
"  No,  sir,"  replied  the  boy. 

"  Does  he  belong  to  the  ?  " 

"  No,  sir." 

"  Ah  !    Perhaps  he  is  an  Odd  Fellow  '?  " 
-    "  No,  sir." 

"  Is  it  possible  !    Then  he  must  be  an  Elk  ?  " 
"  No,  sir." 

"  Is  he  a  Grand  Army  man  ?  " 
"  No,  sir." 

"  That's  strange.    Er  can  you  tell  me  what  in  thunder  your 

father  means,  then,  when  he  gets  out  on  the  sidewalk  every  morning 
and  makes  all  kinds  of  signs,  and  swings  his' arms  and  hollers  V  " 

"  Oh,  you  musn't  mind  that." 
Why  not  ?  " 

*'  Pa  has  had  St.  Vitus'  dance  for  thirteen  years." 

Not  Good  Material. —  There  are  too  many  people  who  will  not 
cast  their  bread  upon  the  waters  unless  they  are  assured  beforehand 
that  it  will  come  back  again  in  a  few  days  a  full  grown  sandwich,  all 
trimmed  with  ham,  butter,  and  mustard,  rolled  up  in  a  warranty 
deed  for  one-half  of  the  earth  and  a  mortgage  on  the  other.  Such 
fellows  are  not  good  fraternity  men. 


Selected  Literature. 


Ixix 


Chicago's  New  Password.— Wife.  "  Cyrus,  this  is  a  pretty  time 
for  you  to  be  coming-  in.  It's  half  an  hour  past  midnight.  You've 
beert at  the  club  again,  drinking." 

Husband  (with  impressing  gravity  and  maintaining-  his  equilibrium 
with  much  effort) — "  M'riar,  my  dear,  you  do  me  injustice.  I  was 
caught  on  jury.  Couldn't  get  off  till  a  few  minutes  ago.  Came 
straight  home." 

Wife.  "  You  are  deceiving  me,  Cyrus.  Say  memourandransancti- 
ficadubandanallelolipedonisemically . ' ' 

Husband  (cautiously).  "  Certainly,  m'  dear.  Memoran-moran- 
bandan-scat  —  (getting  reckless  and  letting  go  all  holds)  —  G' out  o' 
my  way,  madam  !  'f  I  can't  get  into  my  own  house  'thout  giving 
'fernal  password,  I'll  resign  as  head  o'  this  family.  G'  way  !  " — Ex- 
change. 

A  Few  Don'ts. — Don't  ask  for  the  treasurer's  report  if  you  happen 
to  owe  back  dues. 

Don't  rise  to  a  point  of  order  unless  you  see  that  the  point  won't  rise 
to  meet  you  half  way. 

Don't  blackball  a  man  more  than  fourteen  times  ;  better  let  him  in 
the  lodge  in  order  to  get  rid  of  him. 

Don't  smoke  in  the  ante-room.  It  is  very  offensive  to  the  brothers 
who  don't  happen  to  have  a  fifteen-center  on  tap. 

Don't  do  all  the  talking  during  the  session  ;  the  rest  of  the 
brothers  will  think  you  own  the  floor  if  you  have  it  all  the  time. 

Don't  fight  in  the  midst  of  a  lodge  meeting.  Wait  until  the  close 
of  the  session  and  then  go  home  and  tell  your  wife  how  the  other 
fellow  backed  down. 

The  inquiry  made  immediately  after  a  man's  death  is  said  to 
differ  with  different  nations.  In  France  the  question  is  :  "  How  old 
was  he?"  A  German  of  scientific  turn  of  mind  will  ask  you  :  "Of 
what  disease  did  he  die  ?  "  England  still  retains  its  spice  of  the  pious, 
and  the  first  exclamation  an  Englishman  utters  on  being  informed  of 
his  friend's  death  is  :  Thank  the  Lord  !  he  is  out  of  his  suffering  I  " 
An  Italian  must  cling  to  life  more  dearly,  who  commiserates  his  dead 
friend  with  a  "Poor  Fellow  !  "  The  Russian  phrase  is  characteristic: 
"  The  man  is  fortunate  ;  he  need  work  no  more,"  and  comes  natural 
from  the  lips  of  men  who  work  hard  for  a  minimum  of  comfort.  The 
Dutchman  is  held  to  be  fond  of  money,  and  to  ask  :  "How  much 
money  has  he  left  ?  "  The  American  alone  thinks  of  his  relatives  and 
his  family,  and  puts  the  very  important  question  :  "  How  much  life 
insurance  did  he  carry  ?  " — Indicator. 

It  is  said  of  a  man  in  Elmira,  N.  Y.,  that  he  sent  in  a  bill  for 
$13.50  to  an  executor  for  expenses  incurred  in  attending  his  own 
mother's  funeral.  We  think  this  fellow  just  a  little  meaner  than  the 
one  who  gives  as  a  reason  for  not  insuring  his  life  that  his  wife  might 
marry  again  and  some  other  fellow  have  the  spending  money. — Guide. 


Ixx 


Selected  Literature. 


St.  Peter.    "  Did  you  ever  do  anything-  very  bad  ?  " 
Arrival.       I  —  I  acted  as  receiver  of  a  fraternal  order." 
St.  Peter.       Did  you  make  a  distribution  to  the  members  while  on 
earth  ?  " 

Arrival.  "  N— no  !  You  see,  there  were  so  many  thing's  I  had  to 
ask  the  court  about.  My  son  thinks  he  will  be  able  to  have  things 
ready  to  make  an  assessment  to  cover  expenses  before  very  long. 
There  was  only  about  $1,000,000  when  I  was  made  receiver,  and  we  had 
to  use  this  all  up  in  proving  some  of  the  claims.  I  was  very  economi- 
cal, and  the  members  will  get  " 

St.  Peter.    "  Turn  to  the  left,  please." 

Secret  Society  Secrets.— (Wife,  11:30  p.  m.)— What's  that 
horrid  odor  ?    Smells  like  alcohol." 

Husband  —  "  Yes,  my  dear,  we  use  alcohol  at  the  lodge  for  initia- 
tion. Take  some  alcohol,  light  it,  put  salt  in  the  flame,  and  it  gives 
a  ghostly  yellow  light,  makes  folks  look  like  ghosts,  you  know." 

"  But  that  odor  comes  from  your  breath. " 

"Yes,  m'dear  ;  in  the  thirty-seventh  degree  I  personate  the  chief 
demon  with  flames  coming  from  his  mouth.  I  take  a  mouthful  of 
alcohol  and  a  swallow  of  salt  and  then  set  fire  to  it.  But  m'dear,  you 
musn't  tell  these  thingp.  Secret  s'ciety  secrets  are  sacred  you  know. 
— Nortliwesievn  Labor  U)iion. 

A  Wasted  Life. — "  Ah,  yes,  his  was  a  wasted  life,"  sighed  the 
bald-headed  gentleman. 

"Was  ho  dissipated?  Had 'he  antipathy  for  work?  Was  he  a 
gambler,  a  lover  of  fast  horses,  a  —  " 

No,  no,"  interrupted  the  bald-headed  gentleman,  "  none  of  those, 
but  worse,  far  worse.  He  spent  his  life  endeavoring  to  persuade  people 
that  fraternal  beneficiary  societies  would  go  to  pieces  like  a  rope  of 
sand." 

Splendid  Dicipline. —  "Yes,  sir,"  said  the  worthy  commander, 
"  I  have  got  my  lodge  under  splendid  dicipline.  The  members  will 
obey  my  gavel  with  great  promptitude." 

"  I  suppose  one  rap  will  generally  call  thera  to  order." 

"  One  rap  !  Why,  bless  your  soul,  they  have  got  so  used  to  hear- 
ing thirteen  that  nothing  less  than"  that  will  have  any  effect  on 
them.    Splendid  dicipline,  sir,  just  splendid. 

"  I  don't  believe  in  these  secret  societies,"  said  one  Austin  lady 
to  another. 

"That's  very  singular,"  replied  the  other;  "your  husband  is  a 
Forester,  an  Odd  Fellow,  and  a  Knight  of  Honor,  and  you  will  have  at 
least  $10,000  when  he  dies. " 

"  But  what  good  does  all  that  do  me,"  was  the  tearful  response, 
"when  he  never  dies  ?  "  And  the  poor  creature  burst  into  tears. — 
Texas  Siftivgs. 


# 


Selected  Literature. 


Ixxi 


A  Brother  ix  Distress.— "Pardon  me.  sir,  but  I'm  a  brother 
in  distress."*  exclaimed  a  portly  gentleman  to  a  perfect  stranger,  who 
wore  an  X.  Y.  Z.  badge  on  the  street. 

'*  In  what  war  can  I  assist  you  '?  "  asked  the  one  addressed.  Are 
you  in  need  of  money  '?  ** 

"Xo,  but  I  got  a  new  pair  cf  pants  this  afternoon  and  I  want  to 
know  if  they  hang  straight. " 

Insttrance  Agent  :  *•  It's  all  right,  the  doctor  says  you  are  the 
best  risk  he  ever  examined.  "*  Citizen  —  *'  The  best  risk  t  "  "  Yes  : 
soundest  constitution  and  perfect  health,  you  know."*  "Did  he  say 
that  ?  ""  ''Yes,  indeed.  Xo  trouble  about  your  case.  He  said  there 
was  nothing  to  prevent  you  from  living  one  hundred  years."*  You 
don't  mean  it "?  ""  Honest  truth.  Come  right  around  to  my  office 
and  I'll  fix  up  the  papers  at  once.""  "Xo.  thank  you,  it  won't  pay. 
I'm  too  healthy.  I  will  join  a  benefit  lodge  and  get  insurance  at 
cost."" —  PluladeVphia  Call. 

"  What,  travel  with  a  party  of  thirteen  ?  I  wouldn't  think  of  such 
a  thing.  Thirteen  is  a  mighty  unlucky  number,""  said  the  Omaha 
man.  "Thirteen  is  a  lucky  number  if  there  ever  was  one, "' replied 
the  Chicago  man.  How  do  you  make  that  out  ?''  "  Well,  I  was  one 
of  a  party  of  thirteen  who  went  out  on  a  trip,  and  as  some  of  us  were 
a  little  superstitious  in  those  days,  we  all  bought  accident  insurance 
tickets.  Well.  sir.  the  train  ran  off  the  track,  we  all  got  smashed  up. 
and  every  blessed  mother's  son  of  us  got  S-50  a  week,  just  for  laying 
around  and  getting  well.  Talk  about  luck  I  That  was  the  luckiest 
thing  I  ever  struck."" — Sklected. 

■■Ibelie^*e  there  is  money  in  those  accident  and  life  insurance 
companies."'  said  old  Barkins.  "  They  allow  you  8I.0CK)  for  an  eye. 
$3.(*(M:i  for  two  eyes.  81.5Ch3  for  an  arm  or  leg.  and  S3. (XX)  for  two  arms 
or  two  legs,  but  they  only  give  your  widow  8-5.000  if  you  die.  Well, 
its  easy  enough  to  see  that  you  can  make  more  than  8-5,000  if  you  die 
kinder  slow.  First,  lose  your  legs,  then  your  arms,  then  your  eyes, 
and  then  die.  That's  three  83.000,  and  the  80.OOO  for  your  widow 
besides  —  814.000  altogether.  I  tell  you.  Jim.  there's  money  in  that, 
and  I'm  going  to  get  insured  right  now." — Harper's  Bo zar. 

"There  comes  that  life  insurance  agent  again!"*  exclaimed  a 
Wall  street  broker,  as  he  stood  at  a  window  in  his  office  the  other 
morning. 

"To  see  you  ?  "' 

"Yes.  He"s  bothered  the  life  out  of  me  for  the  last  six  months  to 
take  a  policy."" 

"  My  dear  sir,  you  must  have  encouraged  him  at  the  start." 

"  Well,  I  guess  I  did.  He  asked  me  for  a  light  for  his  cigar,  and  I 
gave  it  to  him.  It  will  be  a  valuable  experience  to  me." —  Wall 
Street  Xeirs. 


Ixxii 


Selected  Literature. 


Husband  (coming  home  late  from  the  lodge).  "  Going  to  keep  me 
standing  here  in  the  cold  all  night,  Maria  ?   Lemme  in  !  " 

Wife  (with  cold,  metallic  voice).  "  If  you  can  distinctly  articulate 
the  words  'six  long,  slim,  slick  saplings,'  Mr.  Ferguson,  I  will  unlock 
the  door,  and  not  otherwise." 

Husband  (slowly,  and  with  labored  enunciation).  I  have  brought 
you  a  beautiful  (hie)  set  of  furs,  M'ria." 

Door  opens  immediately. 

"Beautiful,"  said  the  drummer.  "Sixty  birds  in  two  hours, 
and  only  missed  two  shots." 

A  quiet  party  sitting  in  a  seat  opposite  put  down  his  paper,  rushed 
across  the  aisle  of  the  car  and  grasped  him  warmly  by  the  hand. 
"Allow  me  to  congratulate  you,  sir ;  I  am  a  professional  myself,"  he 
said. 

"  Professional  sportsman  ?  " 

"  No,  professional  liar.  I  am  an  agent  of  the  Everlastingly  Guar- 
anteed Association  of  New  York  City." 

"  Oh,"  said  the  drummer,  "that  settles  it.  I  withdraw  from  com^ 
petition. " 

A  YOUNG  widow  in  Waukesha  whose  husband  had  been  dead  a 
month,  and  whom  she  had  always  supposed  to  be  free  from  all  vices, 
was  overhauling  his  clothes  the  other  day.  She  found  a  large  plug  of 
tobacco  in  a  coat  pocket.  "Oh,  George,  George,"  she  exclaimed  de- 
sparingly,  "  you  and  I  will  never  meet  in  the  good  world  !  "  In  another' 
pocket  of  the  same  garment  she  found  a  life  insurance  policy  for 
$5,000,  of  which  she  had  before  known  nothing,  and  she  burst  forth 
exultantly,  "Oh,  yes,  we  will  !  we  will !  heaven  will  forgive  him  for 
his  one  little  fault."  —  Labor  Review. 

"I'm  all  right  in  case  anything  should  happen  to  me,"  said  a  sub- 
stantial looking  citizen,  as  he  stood  talking  with  a  friend  on  the  street 
the  other  day.  "  I  have  $30,000  insurance  on  my  life  and  an  accident 
policy  for  $10,000,  which  would  yield  me  a  weekly  indemnity  of  $50  if 
I  should  meet  with  an  accident.    I  don't  feel  afraid  of  any  mishap." 

Ten  seconds  later  a  boy  cried  "  mad  dog  !  "  and  the  substantial 
looking  citizen  was  fifteen  feet  up  a  telegraph  pole  before  his  friend 
could  look  over  his  shoulder  and  see  that  the  dog  was  suffering  from 
nothing  more  serious  than  a  fit. 

Mrs.  McGinty  :    "  Did  yez  say  Denny's  loife  is  not  insured  ?  " 
Mrs.  O'Rafferty  :    "  Naw,  indade." 

Mrs.  McGinty  :    "  Bedad,  an'  him  workin'  on  th'  rocks  wid  th' 

blasts  an'  things.    Shure,  Moike  belongs  to  ,  or  many's  a 

time  he'd  been  kilt  long  ago.  Th'  other  day  a  blast  wint  off  before  he 
knowed  it,  an'  divil  a  scratch  did  he  get.  Loife  insurance  is  a  foine 
institution,  and  prevints  many  a  leddy  bein'  a  widdy  before  her 
toime." 


Selected  Literature. 


Ixxiii 


Sick  man  to  wife  :    "  If  I  should  die,  dear,  would  you  marry  again  ?  " 

Wife  (sobbing) :  "  Oh,  I  think  not,  John,  but  your  life  is  insured 
for  $20,000,  you  know,  and  no  doubt  I  should  have  very  strong  pressure 
to  resist. " 

"  Oh,  misery  !  "  cried  the  editor. 
"  What's  the  matter  now  V  " 

"I  just  threw  a  poet  out  of  the  window  ;  and  his  wife,  who  was 
waiting  for  him  below,  has  presented  one  of  our  insurance  coupons  at 
the  cashier's  desk.  He  had  it  on  him  !  Another  $500  gone  when  $2 
would  have  bought  not  only  his  poem  but  his  everlasting  gratitude. — 
Puck. 

"What  !  are  you  going  to  leave  already,  Kosciusco  ?  "  murmured 
the  maiden. 

"  I  must,  dearest.  I'd  give  ten  years  of  my  life  to  be  able  to  spend 
the  rest  of  the  evening  with  thee,  but  there  is  a  called  meeting  of  the 
Idiotic  Order  of  Red  Muffs,  and  I  am  Most  Puissant  Past  Grand  Cy- 
clops, and  if  I  ain't  there  on  time  I'll  have  to  pay  thirty-five  cents  fine. 
I've  got  to  go.  Farewell,  dearest  !  "  and  he  scooted  like  a  beautiful 
dream.  ^ 

A  Just  Reproof. — A  brother  who  had  been  out  very  late  every 
night  for  two  weeks,  explaining  to  his  wife  that  he  had  been  out  "on 
a  committee,"  was  roused  at  three  o'clock  the  other  morning  by  a 
Thomas  concert  just  outside  his  window. 

He  was  about  to  get  up  and  hurl  something  at  the  cat,  when  his 
wife  restrained  him  with  :  "  Never  mind,  John,  perhaps  the  animal 
is  out  on  a  committee." 

Slightly  Sarcastic.—"  Yes,  sir,"  he  said,  "it  takes  a  lot  of  hard 
work  to  hold  a  position  in  our  lodge." 
"  It  does  ?  " 

"  Yes,  indeed.    The  presiding  officer  was  saying  to  me  to-day  that 
a  man  without  strong  mental  qualifications  ought  not  to  seek  a  chair." 
"  Er — but  you  seem  to  have  got  along  pretty  well,  haven't  you  ?  " 

He  Couldn't  Stand  Everything.— High  Mucky  Muck  (to  ini- 
tiate). "  Mr.  Brown,  eat  what  is  given  you.  You  will  find  it  equal  to 
the  best  on  your  table. " 

Initiate  (very  much  dejected).  "Oh,  I  say,  if  the  initiation  is  as 
bad  as  that,  I  guess  I  had  better  retire  now,  and  give  up  all  hopes  of 
becoming  a  brother." 

Wanted  to  Do  Something  Handsome. —  "  The  secretary  wants 
his  salary  raised,"  said  one  brother  to  another  at  the  meeting  the 
other  night. 

"  What's  he  getting  now  ?  " 

"  Twenty-fi.ve  dollars  a  year.    I  think  it  ought  to  be  more." 
"  So  do  I.    Let's  start  a  movement  to  make  it  $25.50." 


Ixxiv 


Selected  Literature. 


It  Freezes  at  32  Degrees.— Mrs.  Maginnis.  "  I  understand  that 
your  husband  has  just  received  the  thirty-second  degree,  Mrs.  Maguf- 
fin." 

Mrs.  Maguffin.    "  Yes,  John  is  just  above  the  freezing  point." 

His  Mind  Somewhere  Else.—  "Well,  how  do  you  feel  ?  "  asked 
the  presiding  officer  of  the  candidate  who  was  initiated  the  night 
before. 

Oh,  I'm  well  enough  to  be  out,  thank  you." 
"  I  want  to  know  !  "  ejaculated  the  first  speaker,  thoughtlessly. 

"  John,"  said  the  wife  to  a  Master  Mason,  "  did  you  have  cabbage 
for  lunch  at  the  lodge  to-night  ?  " 

"  No,  my  dear,"  he  replied.    "  Why  do  you  ask  ?  " 

"  Well,  then,  my  dear,  I  wish  you  would  smoke  better  cigars." 

A  New  Name. — "Why  do  you  refer  to  the  lodge  as  the  'railroad 
express  ?  '  "  asked  a  woman  of  a  female  friend  whose  husband  was  a 
prominent  secret  society  man. 

"  Because  the  members  are  always  '  through  by  daylight,'  "  replied 
the  woman  who  had  often  passed  the  night  waiting  for  her  liege  lord 
to  come  home  from  the  lodge. 

"How  many  lodges  did  you  say  your  husband  belonged  to  ? " 
"Fifteen." 

"  Mercy  on  me !  But  think  of  a  man  being  out  fifteen  nights  a 
week  !    I'm  really  glad  that  I'm  a  widow  !  —  JSfew  York  Telegram. 


C.  C.  Hassler,  (tlie  Woodman  Poet),  Bloomington,  111. 


''Corn£eld  Poetry.'' 

BY  A  BACKWOODSMAN. 


Thar  is  nothin'  in  this  wide,  wide  world 

That  makes  a  man  so  glad, 
As  to  know  he's  drivin'  sorrow 

From  the  hearts  of  them  that's  sad  ; 
And  there's  nothin'  cheers  a  Woodman's  heart 

An'  makes  it  feel  so  light, 
As  to  know  that  those  around  him 

Are  cheerful  like  and  bright. 

Now,  the  only  time  for  man  to  work 

Is  when  thar's  work  to  do, 
And  the  only  time  for  man  to  play 

Is  when  that  work  is  through  ; 
But  it  seems  as  if  in  this  yere  world, 

From  the  time  our  life's  begun, 
That  the  poor  man's  play-day  never  comes - 

His  work  is  never  done. 

And  so  we  look  around  us. 

Jest  to  see  how  we  can  make 
Provision  for  the  future  for 

The  dear  ones  that  we  take. 
Who  we  swear  to  love  and  honor 

Jest  as  long  as  life  shall  last, 
And  protect  them  in  the  future 

As  we've  tried  to  in  the  past. 

So,  with  many  thousand  others, 

We  have  jined  the  Woodman's  band, 
Where  the  widder  is  protected 

By  the  laws  of  this  yere  land  - 
Where  the  rich  man  and  the  poor  man 

Meet  together  jest  the  same. 
And  the  foreign  born  or  native's 

Never  ask  from  whence  he  came. 

My  wife  was  kinder  skeered 
About  my  jinin',  so  she  sed  ; 
"  Now,  John,  do  you  be  keerful 

And  don't  you  lose  your  hed. 


Selected  Literature. 


I've  heered  it  said  a  thousand  times 

The  lodges  try  their  best 
To  skeer  a  man  and  make  him  think 

That  he  can't  stand  the  test. " 

Sed  I,    Now  looke  here,  Nancy  ; 

Don't  worrj',  stew,  or  fret, 
For  if  these  Woodmen  think  I'm  green, 

I'll  fool  'em,  now,  you  bet. 
I'll  take  their  fun,  jest  as  it  comes. 

As  meek  as  any  lamb. 
But  if  they  git  to  crowdin'  me 

They'll  find  out  who  I  am." 

But  when  they  got  me  on  the  floor 

I  wish'd  I  hadn't  jined  ; 
It  seemed  as  if  their  deviltry 

Had  all  on  me  combined. 
They  made  me  chop,  they  made  me  split. 

They  made  me  sing  and  dance, 
And  when  I  axed  'em  who  I  was, 

They  said  my  name  was    Pants. " 

When  all  was  over,  home  I  went. 

With  glad  thoughts  in  my  hed. 
Of  course  I  thought  my  wife  and  babes 

Had  long  since  gone  to  bed  ; 
But  thar  was  Nancy  waitin', 

Tho'  her  cheeks  were  wet  with  tears, 
She  didn't  laugh,  and  couldn't  cry, 

Betwixt  her  hopes  and  fears. 

"  Oh,  John,"  she  said,  "  I'm  glad  you  come 
And  you've  insured  your  life. 
It  proves  to  me  how  much  you  love 

Your  Nancy  —  your  dear  wife, 
I  often  think  of  your  priceless  worth. 

In  the  happy  days  of  yore, 
And  now,  she  said,  as  she  wiped  her  eyes. 
You're  worth  ^  three  thous<md  move.'' 

We  have  men  from  every  station. 

And  from  every  rank  in  life  ; 
We  have  doctors  from  the  colleges. 

Where  they  carve  men  with  a  knife  ; 
We  have  law^-ers,  too,  and  good  ones  ; 

We  have  preachers  by  the  score  ; 
We  have  farmers,  clerks,  and  bankers. 

And  the  Lord  knows  many  more. 


Selected  Literature, 


We  have  life  insurance  agents, 

Jest  as  good  as  in  the  land. 
They  will  give  you  the  endowment, 

Life,  or  any  other  plan. 
Their  companies  are  all  the  best, 

Their  rates  they  can't  be  beat, 
But  they  all  except  the  Woodmen  : 

With  it  they  don't  compete. 

There's  some  will  sell  you  suits  of  clothes, 

In  fashion's  latest  mode, 
With  neckties,  trousers,  coat,  and  vest  — 

You'd  think  they  on  you  growed  ; 
He'll  grab  a  handfull  in  the  back, 

And  whisper  in  your  ear, 
*'  So  hellup  me  gracious,  friend,  when  did 

You  leave  your  measure  here  ?  " 

Some  say  thar's  one  thing  yet  to  do 

To  keep  our  craft  afloat. 
And  that's  to  bring  the  ladies  in, 

And  make  them  ride  the  goat ; 
But  others  think  she  can't  leave  home, 

As  the  babies  thar  might  cry, 
For  when  woman's  mind's  made  up  to  jine^ 

She'll  ride  that  goat  or  die. 

This  life  is  but  a  partnership, 

With  share  and  share  alike  — 
One-half  of  all  belongs  to  you. 

The  other  to  your  wife  ; 
So,  if  the  ladies  arc  to  jine, 

And  Woodmen's  honors  share. 
Alternate  nights  we'll  stay  at  home, 

And  mind  the  babies  thei'<  '. 

Now,  our  doctors,  they  are  dandies  — 

And  on  that  you're  safe  to  bet  — 
And  versed  in  all  the  latest  forms 

Of  social  etiquette  ; 
But  if  you  have  the  rheumatiz. 

Dyspepsia,  or  the  gout. 
With  blue  mass  pills  they'll  shake  you  up, 

And  turn  you  wrong  side  out. 

But  men  in  that  profession 

Mostly  have  the  skill  and  tact 

Of  knowin'  how  to  reach  you 
If  your  liver  doesn't  act ; 


Ixxx 


Selected  Literature, 


So,  if  they  diagnose  your  case, 
They'll  do  it  with  great  care. 

And  they'll  find  that  liver  ere  they  stop, 
Or  they  aint  no  liver  there. 

But  of  all  the  nice  professions 

That  the  Woodmen's  Camp  embrace, 
The  lawyer  has  decidedly 

The  advantage  in  the  race  ; 
For  the  records  go  to  show  it, 

And  you  never  see  it  fail, 
That  the  lawyer  goes  to  congress. 

While  the  client  goes  to  jail. 

But  if  you  get  into  trouble, 

In  a  lawsuit  or  a  fight, 
Or  git  caught  out  stealin'  chickens 

On  a  dark  and  stormy  night. 
The  lawyer,  just  to  clear  you. 

Will  put  in  his  biggest  licks. 
And  altho'  you  git  your  freedom, 

'Tis  the  lawyer  gets  the  chicks. 

And  it's  right  that  he  should  have  i(ihem, 

As  it  mostly  is  the  case 
That  the  client  wants  the  lawyer 

To  bear  the  half  of  his  disgrace  ; 
And  its  jest  as  true  as  preachin' 

That  when  honesty's  at  par 
There's  a  thousand  times  more  rascals 

'Mong  the  clients  than  the  bar. 

So  that's  the  way  the  Woodman, 

As  he  wends  his  way  through  life, 
Will  always  find  the  neighbors  free 

From  envy  and  from  strife  — 
Always  ready  to  assist  you. 

And  from  no  duty  shirk. 
There  reward  is  in  the  knowin' 

There  is  love  behind  the  work. 

But  the  working  days  of  most  of  us 

Will  soon  be  past  and  lost. 
Like  the  leaves  that  fall  in  autumn 

When  they're  blighted  by  a  frost; 
And  the  shinin'  threads  of  oilver 

Soon  will  cluster  on  the  brow. 
For  the  marks  of  care  and  worry 

They  are  plainly  showin'  now. 


Selected  Literature. 


And  the  homes  where  dwell  the  loved  ones 

Soon  will  be  "so  lone  and  still  " 
That  the  echoes  of  our  footsteps 

Will  the  rooms  and  hallways  fill ; 
For  the  children,  they'll  be  absent, 

And  their  voices  will  be  missed, 
And  the  time  will  seem  as  yesterday 

Since  first  their  lips  we  kissed. 

For  the  little  chair  and  cradle, 

Once  that  sat  upon  the  floor. 
Will  be  packed  up  in  the  garret. 

Or  behind  the  closet  door. 
And  the  places  at  the  table 

Where  they  used  to  sit  and  eat, 
Will  be  empty  as  the  house  is 

Of  little  noisy  feet. 

And  you'll  wake  up  in  the  night  time 

And  listen  to  the  noise 
Of  footsteps  on  the  sidewalk, 

Soundin'  kinder  like  the  "  boys." 
But  the  sound  will  die  away 

On  the  wintry  midnight  air, 
And  you'll  lay  awake  and  wonder 

Why  he  isn't  almost  there. 

And  some  will  leave  us  when  our  hearts 

Are  bruised  and  racked  with  pain. 
And  tho'  they  go  so  peacefully 

They'll  not  come  back  again. 
Except  in  dreams  we'll  see  their  faces 

And  feel  their  soft  caress. 
As  loving,  sweet,  and  tender 

As  when  clasped  to  mother's  breast. 

Oh,  "  this  life  is  what  we  make  it," 

Sometimes  the  poets  say, 
But  they  don't  advise  our  meetin' 

With  our  troubles  half  the  way. 
The  boys  and  girls  that  leave  our  homes 

To  climb  life's  rugged  hill. 
Will  find  the  hand  that  led  us  there 

Will  lead  them  if  they  will. 

The  question  once  was  asked  of  Him, 

Who  dwelt  upon  the  earth. 
And  crowned  with  holy  honor 

The  lowliest  of  birth. 


Ixxxii 


Selected  Literature, 


Who  is  my  neighbor  V  "  let  us  hear, 

That  we  may  surely  know 
On  whom  our  love  shall  given  be, 

And  kindly  deeds  bestow. 

The  answer  came  in  parable, 

Yet  all  could  understand. 
And  the  figure  clearly  painted 

Was  the  Good  Samaritan, 
Who  found  the  wounded  stranger, 

As  he  on  the  roadside  lay, 
And  did  not  leave  him  suffering, 

But  helped  him  on  his  way. 

Then  long  live  the  Woodmen  everywhere. 

North,  south,  and  east,  and  west  — 
Far  out  where  the  golden  sunbeams  . 

Kiss  the  snow-capped  Rookies'  crest. 
And  long  live  our  dear  old  Order  ; 

To  it  we  surely  pledge 
Our  honor  here  as  neighbors, 

By  the  beetle,  axe,  and  wedge. 


The  Wife's  Opinion  of  the  M,  W.  A. 

BY  C.  C.  HASSLER. 


I  never  could  see  any  manner  of  sense 

In  these  doin's  that's  hid  from  the  light, 
In  lodges  and  Camps,  that  entice  our  men 

And  keep  them  out  half  of  the  night ; 
And  I  alius  expressed  my  opinions  right  out. 

In  language  that  none  could  mistake, 
That  no  man  of  mine  should  join  'em,  if  I 

Could  prevent  it  by  hinderin'  Jake. 

But,  laus  !  what  a  time  I  did  have  to  be  sure. 

For  when  any  new  thing  struck  the  town. 
They  made  right  for  Jake,  and  tried  to  get  him 

To  sign  the  very  first  name  that  went  down  ; 
But  I  fit  them  so  hard,  by  my  actions  and  words. 

That  I  came  out  ahead  every  time, 
And  when  lodges  of  this  thing  and  that  started  up, 

Jake  was  never  quite  ready  to  jine. 


/ 


Selected  Literature. 


Ixxxiii 


There  was  Freemasons,  Old  Fellows,  Red  Men,  and  I 

Can't  begin  to  tell  how  many  more, 
And  still  they  kept  comin',  until  I  believe 

There  must  a  been  nearly  a  score. 
They  marched  thro'  the  town  on  the  4th  of  July, 

Jest  to  see  what  a  string"  they  could  make, 
And  I  peeped  through  the  window  to  see  them  go  by, 

But  I  laughed  when  I  didn't  see  Jake. 

And  so  it  kept  goin*,  first  this  thing  and  that, 

Until  one  day,  along  in  the  fall, 
I  read  in  the  press  of  a  new  scheme  on  foot 

That  would  jest  beat  the  best  of  them  all. 
They  called  it  the  "  Woodmen  '" —  a  queer  name  I  thought  — 

And  I  said,  jist  by  way  of  a  jest. 
That  if  I  had  of  named  'em,  it  seemed  to  me  then. 

That    Blockheads  "  would  suit  them  the  best. 

But  Jake  made  no  answer  to  this  last  remark, 

Tho'  he  said  that  he  thought  it  unkind. 
As  he  told  me  of  some  of  the  best  men  in  town. 

Who  he  knew  that  very  day  had  jined. 
There  was  Worley,  the  baker,  and  Billings,  his  clerk, 

And  Thompson,  who  lived  cross  the  way  : 
There  was  Phillips,  the  banker,  and  his  brother  John, 

And  last,  but  not  least.  Deacon  Gray. 

And  then  he  went  on  and  told  me  just  how 

These  "Woodmen  "  were  going  to  do  ; 
They  insure  every  man  who  was  healthy  and  strong, 

And  they  done  it  almighty  cheap,  too  ; 
But  then  it  was  secret,  and  that  was  the  pint 

On  which  we  could  never  agree  ; 
For  if  ever  a  woman  was  stubborn  on  that. 

Let  me  tell  you  that  woman  was  me. 

And  I  quoted  the  scriptures,  and  pinted  them  out  — 

The  passages  clear  as  the  sun  — 
That  sed,     Let  your  light  always  shine,  so  the  world 

Could  see  how  much  good  you  have  done."' 
But  I  skii^ped  all  the  places,  and  purposely,  too. 

And  let  them  severely  alone. 
Where  they  sed  far  worse  than  a  heathen  was  he 

Who  had  failed  to  provide  for  his  own. 

But  they  started  a  Camp,  and  a  big  one  at  that. 
And  the  press  that  came  out  the  next  day, 

Jest  took  'way  my  breath  when  it  said  that  the  chair 
Would  be  filled  by  our  good  Deacon  Gray  — 


Ixxxiv 


Selected  Literature. 


A  man  who  for  piety  none  could  excel, 

And  whose  heart  was  most  fervent  to  prayer ; 

When  the  poor  or  the  needy  was  wanting-  a  friend 
He  was  always  the  first  to  be  there. 

But  still  I  was  deaf  to  all  forms  of  advice, 

And  people  soon  left  me  alone  ; 
I  though  I  was  right,  and  I  let  others  know, 

They  should  'tend  to  affairs  of  their  own. 
What's  the  use,  I  would  say,  for  a  man  that  is  well, 

And  never  been  sick  in  his  life, 
To  waste  all  his  time  and  his  money  to  keep 

Some  other  man's  children  or  wife. 


Thus  I  reasoned  and  talked  'mid  the  comforts  of  home. 

Surrounded  by  plenty  in  life," 
Never  dreaming-  how  often  a  woman  is  called 

To  be  widow  instead  of  a  wife  ; 
But  the  lesson  I  learned,  I  shall  never  forget. 

For  it  taught  me  to  think  and  reflect, 
And  to  try  to  save  others  the  sorrow  and  pain 

That  by  prejudice  causes  regret. 

But  a  dream,  did  you  say  ?    Yes,  a  dream,  but  the  truth 

Was  never  more  vivid  or  i-eal ; 
And  when  I  remember  that  nig-ht,  I  can  pray 

You  may  never  such  agony  feel  — 
No  husband,  no  home,  few  friends  in  the  world, 

Alone,  save  an  innocent  boy  — 
Our  baby  —  who  brought  to  our  once  happy  home 

Inexpressible  comfort  and  joy. 

Thus  reading  and  pondering  over  it  all. 

One  evening,  I  sat  all  alone. 
But  my  eyes  would  grow  heavy,  as  time  wore  along, 

Unmindful  of  how  fast  it  had  flown  ; 
And  soon  from  my  hand  fell  the  book  to  the  floor. 

I  was  sleeping.    But  ah  !  thro'  my  head 
Ran  a  vision,  a  dream  I  shall  never  forget. 

For  I  dreamed  that  my  husband  was  dead. 

And  with  the  dark  billows  of  grief  that  swept  o'er 

My  soul,  came  the  sting  of  remorse. 
For  I  knew  I  and  baby  both  paupers  were  left 

By  my  own  wayward,  unthinking  course. 
A  mortgage  would  soon  sweep  away  what  was  left 

Of  a  home  that  my  husband,  in  life. 
Had  prepared  for  a  haven  to  shield  from  the  world 

His  own  loving  baby  and  wife. 


Selected  Literature. 


Ixxxv 


Thus  passed  thro'  my  brain  the  dark  shadow  of  woe, 

As  I  sat  there  in  silence  alone  ; 
Live  specters  they  flitted  before  me,  until, 

In  ray  anguish,  I  uttered  a  groan  ; 
When,  as  if  in  answer  to  prayer,  at  the  door 

Came  a  loud  knock  that  caused  me  to  wake, 
And  there  —  Oh  !  the  joy  language  cannot  express  — 

Stood  my  husband,  my  darling  old  Jake. 

I  sprang  up  and  kissed  the  dear  fellow  so  quick 

That  his  breath  I  almost  took  away. 
">  My  gracious,  Maria,  how  frightened  you  look  ! 

Did  you  think  I  had  gone  off  to  stay  ? 
I  have  some  news  to  tell  you,  perhajjs  you  won't  like, 

And  I  might  as  well  say  it  outright. 
Forgive  me,  if  wrong,  but  the  truth  of  it  is 

I  have  just  joined  the  Woodmen  to-night." 

The  rest  is  soon  told.    But  a  word  of  advice 

I  would  give  to  the  unthinking  wife ; 
'Tis  not  to  discourage  your  husband,  who  knows 

He  can  only  protect  you  in  life. 
But  cheer  him  with  smiles  of  approval  that  bring 

To  his  heart  a  warm  glow  of  sunshine. 
For  the  love  of  a  true  woman  nearest  compares 

To  the  teachings  we  know  are  divine. 

The  lessons  he  learns  only  fit  him  to  share 

With  others  the  blessings  that  flow 
From  streams  of  fraternity,  freighted  with  joys 

That  cheer  us  thro'  life  as  we  go. 
For  woman  he  labors  and  toils,  that  her  life 

May  be  free  from  dark  poverty's  ray  ; 
For  woman  he  cherishes  hopes  that  are  lit 

By  the  sunlight  of  love  on  his  way. 

Then  give  him  a  smile,  when  he  leaves  you  at  night, 

And  another  one  on  his  return. 
And  always  remember  that  some  day  the  lamp 

Of  this  life  no  longer  will  burn. 
But  over  the  river  he'll  meet  you  again. 

And  greet  you  with  joys  of  the  blest, 
For  he  knew  'twas  the  Woodmen  who  stood  by  your  side, 

And  cheered  you  when  he  was  at  rest. 

But  the  bright,  happy  faces,  all  beaming  with  smiles, 

Assure  me  of  one  thing  to-night, 
'Tis  that  wives  of  most  of  our  neighbors  sustain 

Their  husbands  in  all  that  is  right. 


Ixxxvi 


Selected  Literature. 


Surrounded  with  plenty,  may  no  shadows  fall 

Over  pathway  of  any  in  life, 
But  that  peace  and  prosperity  ever  be  theirs, 

Is  the  pray'r  of  a  Woodman's  wife. 


Fraternal  Mchos, 

BY  C.  C.  IIASSLER. 


In  a  frontier  camp,  one  summer  day, 
'Neath  the  friendly  shade  of  an  oak  tree  lay 
A  Woodman,  resUng-  on  the  ground. 
Disturbed  by  neither  noit-e  nor  sound. 
Since  early  morn  his  swinging-  stroke 
The  silence  of  the  forest  broke. 
His  trusty  friends  alone  were  near. 
The  echoing-  forest  sounds  to  hear  — 
The  axe,  with  keen,  bright,  flashing  edge, 
The  rough  old  beetle  and  the  wedge. 

Three  humble  friends  —  yet  hy  whose  aid 

A  path  was  thro'  the  forest  made  — 

A  path  thro'  which  a  moving  tide 

Of  pioneers  marched,  fought,  and  died. 

Defiantly  his  gaze  was  met 

By  foe  that  ne'er  was  conquered  yet ; 

But  hope  his  heart  fresh  courage  lends 

At  sight  of  these  three  humble  friends. 

Rough  emblems,  true,  of  work  and  toil, 
Without  whose  aid  the  virgin  soil, 
Unclaimed  by  hand  of  man,  would  yield 
No  golden  harvest  in  the  field  ; 
But  labor's  emblem,  then  as  now, 
Will  place  upon  the  Woodman's  brow 
A  crown,  blest  type  of  that  above. 
When  earned  by  work  inspired  by  love. 

The  giant  oak,  that  long  had  stood 
A  kingly  monarch  of  the  wood. 
By  hand  of  man  it  stood  untouched, 
Upheld  by  strong  roots  firmly  clutched 
To  Mother  Earth,  defiance  waved 
To  wind  and  storm,  and  proudly  braved 
All  elements  that  dared  to  bring 
Their  powers  against  the  Forest  King. 


Selected  Literature. 


Ixxxvii 


Vain  boast,  thou  Forest  King,  at  last 

Thy  rule  is  o'er,  thy  reign  is  past ; 

No  longer  towering  toVd  the  skies 

Thy  waving  crest  shall  proudly  rise  ; 

A  foeman,  worthy  of  thy  steel. 

Thy  stout  old  heart  at  last  shall  feel. 

'Tis  man,  God's  noblest  work  on  earth  ; 

Endowed  with  attributes  of  worth 

Of  mind  and  heart,  and  strength  whose  hand 

Holds  kingly  sceptre  in  the  land. 

Hark  !    Echoes  are  ringing  again  and  again, 
That  startle  the  song-bird,  in  thicket  and  glen. 
In  the  depths  of  the  forest  they  sound  and  resound 
As  if  fairies  were  trying  the  music  to  drown. 
As  if  mocking  the  sound  it  comes  hack  at  the  whack 
Of  the  axe,  but  returns  on  the  same  hidden  track, 
Yet  the  gleam  of  the  blade  never  ceases  to  flash 
Until  the  stout  oak  reels  and  falls  with  a  crash. 

Thus  one  by  one,  from  year  to  year, 
Opposing  forces  disappear. 
Unlike  the  ancient  woodmen,  we 
Contend  with  only  those  who  see 
Imaginary  giants  stand 
In  paths  fraternal,  sword  in  hand, 
Forgetting  monitors  within  who  speak 
Of  strong  man's  duty  to'ard  the  weak. 

But  few  decades  have  past  and  gone. 
Yet  fruit  of  muscle,  brain,  and  brawn 
Are  seen  by  evidence  that  bring 
Fresh  laure's  to  the  ncw-crovvned  king. 
Where  savage  tribes  once  held  the  rule. 
Now  stand  the  coUage,  church,  and  school. 
While  towns  transformed  lo  cities  grand, 
But  follow  work  of  woodmen's  hand. 

So  proudly,  then,  to-day  we  share 

The  honors  of  the  name  we  bear  ; 

And  prouder  yet,  we  point  the  way 

To  paths  the  Woodmen  tread  to-day. 

And  tho'  oftimes  o'er  heights  they  lead. 

Of  prejudice  and  selfish  greed. 

Stout  hearts  to  scale  those  heights  will  dare, 

And  place  our  Woodman's  banner  there. 

Beneath  its  folds  are  men  whose  name 
Ne'er  brings  to  us  the  blush  of  shame. 


Ixxxviii 


Selected  Literature. 


With  fellowmen  they  proudly  stand, 
The  peers  of  any  in  the  land. 
Endowed  with  wisdom,  honest  pride 
Inspire  their  hearts  to  safely  guide 
Our  craft,  whose  mission  under  God 
Soothes  hearts  who  feel  his  chastening-  rod. 

A  power  for  good  to-day  we  wield, 
Beneath  the  Palm,  the  Star,  and  Shield, 
While  in  each  Woodman  Camp  or  hall 
There's  safety^  peace^  and  light  for  all. 
While  sixty  thousand  hearts  rejoice, 
They  join  in  one  united  voice 
In  re-affirming  vow  and  pledge 
Upon  the  beetle,  axe,  and  wedge. 

You  ask  who  fill  our  ranks  to-night. 
And  Modern  Woodcraft  battles  fight  — 
Whose  bloodless  victories  outshine 
The  warrior's  deeds  of  olden  time. 
In  palace  grand,  in  humble  cot, 
In  homes  where  love  and  truth  are  taught, 
In  haJls  of  state,  in  church,  and  school, 
There  Knights  of  Woodcraft  live  and  rule. 

Within  our  own  fair  State  we  boast 
A  gallant  fighting  Woodmen  host 
Who'd  hack  our  chiefs  in  courts  of  law. 
Prom  Greenville  west  to  Omaha  ; 
While  north  and  west  the  ruddy  light 
Shows  camp-iires  burning  clear  and  bright, 
Around  which  neighbors,  young  and  old. 
Will  welcome  strangers  to  the  fold. 

As  Neighbors,  then,  with  what  delight 
We  greet  each  honored  guest  to-night, 
And  note  each  pleasant  smile  and  word, 
Praternal  sympathies  have  stirred. 
And  as  we  note  each  smiling  face,  . 
That  to  our  joys  lend  added  grace, 
We  ask,  can  stronger  ties  ever  be 
Than  those  born  of  fraternity  ? 

Praternity,  'tis  to  thy  power 

Mankind  is  moved  to  deeds 
Of  love  and  kindness,  while  the  path 

To  purer  lives  it  leads. 


Selected  Literature. 


Ixxxix 


May  its  bonds  forever  bind  us 
With  a  warm,  fraternal  love, 

Guide  our  footsteps  in  life's  pathway, 
To  a  better  Camp  above. 

There  no  password  is  required, 

Neither  sign,  nor  word,  nor  pledge, 
Love  shall  rule  without  the  signal 

Of  the  beetle,  axe,  and  wedge. 
There  the  Neighbors,  they  will  gather 

Round  the  urn,  with  hearts  so  light, 
As  they  shower  in  the  pebbles  — 

All  one  color  —  snowy  white. 


Little  Crippled  Joe, 

BY  C.  C.  HASSLER. 


Somehow  or  'nuther  every  time 

I  pass  a  school  play-ground, 
An'  see  the  boys  a  playin'  there. 

At  leap-frog,  hare,  and  hound  ; 
A  throwin'  of  each  other  down, 

Or  rasslin'  at  back-holt. 
Jest  full  of  devilment  and  fun 

As  any  unbroke  colt, 
I  alius  turn  my  eyes  away 

Toward  the  big  bord  fence, 
An'  look  as  if  awaitin'  there 

For  studies  to  commence. 
I  see  a  bent  and  crippled  boy 

Like  one  I  used  ter  know, 
Attendin'  school,  along  with  me. 

Called  Little  Crippled  Joe. 

Pore  little  Joe,  he  couldn't  run. 

Nor  jine  in  any  game, 
Exceptin'  mumbly-peg,  sometimes 

Hop  scotch,  if  not  too  lame  ; 
But  there  he'd  set  agin  the  fence 

At  recess,  while  us  boys 
A  playin'  ante  over,  made 

The  most  outlandish  noise ; 


xc 


Selected  Literature. 


An'  many  a  time  I've  seed  him,  when 

He  thought  I  wasn't  near, 
Take  out  his  little  handkerchief 

An'  wipe  away  a  tear, 
An'  look  so  pitiful,  as  down 

His  cheeks  them  tears  would  flow, 
It  made  my  heart  just  ache  for  him. 

Pore  Little  Crippled  Joe. 

The  big"  girls,  and  the  big  boys,  too. 

Sometimes  on  rainy  days. 
Would  Stay  in  doors  at  recess  time, 

An'  have  some  kind  of  plays  — 
Some  plays  that  he  could  jine  'em  in  ; 

Not  them  like  we  hev  now, 
As  Tiddledewink,  an'  them  forgot. 

Before  you  half  know  how  ; 
But  rale  old-fashioned  games  that 

All  could  jine  in  whare  they  set, 
Like  charades,  riddles,  and  the  like, 

Them  kind  you  don't  forget ; 
Sometimes  they'd  kissin'  in  'em,  too, 

Which  some  don't  like,  I  know, 
Yet  somehow  them  girls  always  loved 

To  kiss  pore  Crippled  Joe. 

By  an'  by,  when  winter  came. 

And  froze  up  ponds  and  crick, 
His  seat  was  vacant,  for  we  knew 

Pore  little  Joe  was  sick. 
We  missed  him  in  the  spellin'  class 

On  Friday  afternoons. 
When  larnin'  Jography,  we'd  sing 

The  lessons  off  in  tunes  ; 
The  Master 'd  alius  lead  the  class 

Fer  pVaps  an'  hour  or  more. 
An'  we'd  all  sing  an'  keep  tune  by 

A  stompin'  on  the  floor  ; 
The  girls  they'd  sing  soprany,  but 

When  every  line  would  close 
One  childish  voice  we'd  always  hear. 

Pore  Little  Crippled  Joe's. 

But  somewhere  'long  'bout  Christmas  time, 

The  Master  sed,  one  day. 
That  after  skool  let  out  he  wished 

The  skolars  all  would  stay ; 


Selected  Literature. 


An'  then  he  told  us  mebbe,  when 

Skool  time  begun  again, 
Pore  Little  Crippled  Joe'd  be  free 

Prom  sufferin'  an'  pain, 
An'  sed  as  how  he  wished  we'd  go 

An"  see  him,  for  he  knew 
*    'Twould  do  his  little  heart  good,  an' 

His  pap's  and  mother's,  too  ; 
For,  boys,  that  little  vacant  seat 

On  yonder  second  row 
Will  never  more  be  filled  again 

By  Little  Crippled  Joe. 

An"  sure  enough,  on  Christmas  day, 

When  homes  are  light  and  glad. 
The  home  that  once  was  little  Joe's 

Was  sorrowin'  an'  sad. 
His  little  stockings  hangin'  there, 

As  if  he  meant  to  git 
Some  presents  in  'em,  touched  my  heart  — 

Methinks  I  see  'em  yet ; 
His  cap  and  bookslay  side  hy  side, 

His  little  dinner  pail, 
He'd  never  need  agin  on  earth, 

Was  hangin'  on  a  nail. 
An'  God  had  one  more  skool-boy  who 

To  skool  up  there  would  go. 
Along  with  (ingeh  who  could  fly 

An'  carry  Little  Joe. 


She  Wanted  to  be  a  Woodman, 


The  funniest  story  I  ever  heard  — 
The  funniest  thing  that  ever  occurred  — 
Is  the  story  of  Mrs.  Mehitable  Byrde, 
Who  wanted  to  be  a  Woodman. 

Her  husband,  Tom  Byrde,  is  a  Woodman  true, 
As  good  a  Woodman  as  any  of  you  I 
And  she  wanted  to  be  a  Woodman,  too  — 
This  ridiculous  Mrs.  Byrde. 


xcii 


Selected  Literature. 


She  followed  him  'round,  this  inquisitive  wife, 
She  nabbed  him  and  teased  him  half  out  of  his  life  ; 
And  so  to  terminate  this  unalloyed  strife, 
He  consented  at  last  to  admit  her. 

But  first,  to  disguise  her  from  bonnet  to  "shoon," 
This  ridiculous  lady  agreed  to  put  on  • 
His  breech  —  ah,  forgive  me,  T  meant  pantaloons, 
And  miraculously  did  they  fit  her. 

The  Camp  was  at  work  on  the  second  degree. 
The  camp-fire  blazed  up  merrily, 
The  officers  sat  like  Solomon,  wise. 
And  brimstone  burned  'mid  horrid  cries  ; 
The  "goat  "  roamed  wildly  through  the  room. 
The  candidate  begged  'em  to  let  him  go  home. 
The  "devil  "  himself  stood  there  in  the  heat 
As  proud  as  Taintor  on  his  beat. 
When  in  came  Mrs.  Byrde. 

Oh,  horrible  sounds  !  Oh,  horrible  sight ! 
Can  it  be  that  Woodmen  take  delight 
In  spending  thus  the  hours  of  night  ? 
Ah,  could  their  wives  and  daughtci-  know 
The  unutterable  things  they  say  and  do. 
Their  feminine  hearts  would  burst  with  woe, 
But  this  is  not  all  my  story. 

Those  Woodmen  joined  in  a  hideous  ring, 
The  candidate  howling  like  everything, 
And  thus  in  tones  of  death  they  sing  : 
(The  candidate's  name  was  Morey) 
"  Blood  to  drink  and  bones  to  crack, 
Skulls  to  smash  and  lives  to  take, 
Hearts  to  crush  and  souls  to  burn. 
Give  old  Morey  another  turn 

And  make  him  all  grim  and  gory." 

Trembling  with  horror  stood  Mrs.  Byrde, 
Unable  to  utter  a  single  word  ; 
She  staggered  and  fell  in  the  nearest  chair 
On  the  left  of  the  Worthy  Adviser  there, 
And  scarcely  noticed,  so  loud  the  groans, 
That  the  chair  was  made  of  human  bones. 

Of  human  bones,  on  grinning  skulls, 
That  ghastly  throne  of  horror  rolls, 
A  scalp  across  the  top  was  flung. 


Selected  Literature. 


xciii 


And  teeth  around  the  arms  were  strung ; 
Never  in  all  romance  was  known 
Such  uses  made  of  human  bones. 

The  brimstone  burned  in  lurid  flame, 
Just  like  a  place  we  will  not  name. 
Good  angels  then  inquiring  came 
From  blissful  courts  looked  on  with  shame 

And  tearful  melancholy. 
Again  they  dance,  but  twice  as  bad, 
They  jump  and  sing  like  demons  mad  — 

The  tune  is  Hunkey  Dorey  — 
"  Blood  to  drink  and  bones  to  crack. 
Skulls  to  smash  and  lives  to  take, 
Hearts  to  crush  and  souls  to  burn. 
Give  old  Morey  another  turn 

And  make  him  all  grim  and  gory." 

Then  came  a  pause,  a  pair  of  paws 
Reached  through  the  floor,  up  sliding  doors ; 
They  grabbed  the  unhappy  candidate  ; 
How  can  I  without  tears  relate 
The  lost  and  ruined  Morey's  fate  ? 
She  saw  him  sink  in  a  firey  hole, 
She  heard  him  scream,  "my  soul,  my  soul," 
While  roars  of  fiendish  laughter  roll 

And  drown  the  yells  for  mercy. 

The  misguided  woman  could  stand  no  more  ; 

She  fainted,  and  fell  right  down  on  the  floor 

Midst  all  the  diabolic  roar. 

"  What  then,"  you  ask  me,  "did  befall 

Mehitable  Byrde  ?  "    Why  nothing  at  all ; 

She  had  dreamed  she'd  been  in  a  Woodman  hall. 


A  Voodmen^s  Bleasure. 

BY  C.  C.  HASSLER. 


Dere  vos  some  who  seek  for  bleasure  in  de  vain  persuit  of  wealth, 
And  dere's  others  seek  to  find  it  at  the  zacrifice  of  health. 
Vile  still  others  over  see  and  land,  will  dravel  far  to  find 
The  boon  their  hearts  are  craving,  leaving  sweeter  choys  behind. 
Dere  is  bleasure  in  the  humble  home  dot  rings  mit  choy  und  mirth, 
Ven  the  toils  of  day  is  ofer,  'tis  the  schweetest  spot  on  earth. 
But  the  growning  choy  of  others  is  to  vatch  the  smiles  dot  greep 
Across  the  face  of  baby  in  his  gradle,  fast  asleep. 


xciv 


Selected  Literature. 


Oh,  dot  chubby  leedle  baby,  how  ve  love  to  hear  him  crow 
Ven  he  first  find  out  he  reaches  to  his  mouth  up  mit  his  toe  ; 
Und  ve  vatch  his  efery  motion,  yust  as  glad  as  ve  can  be, 
As  ve  hear  him  first  say  "•  Boppy,"  just  so  blain  as  you  or  me. 
So  eef  others  hof  the  riches,  they  are  welcome  to  their  wealth, 
Ve  are  glad  to  be  gontented  mit  the  blessings  of  good  health, 
For  it  makes  our  choy  the  sweeter,  as  we  vatch  the  smiles  dot  greep 
Across  the  face  of  baby,  in  his  cradle,  fast  asleep. 

Ven  the  evening  lamp  vos  lighted,  und  each  leedle  gurly  head, 
Chust  wos  beeping  from  the  cover  out  upon  the  children's  bed, 
Vot  a  bleasure  'tis  to  listen  to  the  soft,  sweet  lullaby. 
Dot  Gatrina  sings  to  quiet  efery  childish  bain  und  cry. 
'Tis  the  same  old  song  she  listend  to  in  dear  old  faderland. 
Coming  from  her  mother's  lips  to  her  as  mit  a  loving  hand. 
She  rocked  dot  gradle  chently,  while  she  vatched  the  smiles  dot 
greep 

Across  my  own  Gatrina's  face  ven  she  vos  gone  to  sleep. 

But,  von  day,  I  say,     Gatrina,  for  a  goot  und  loving  vife, 
Don't  you  dink  dot  some  insurance  I  should  hof  upon  my  life  ? 
For  if  somedings  now  should  happen  dot  should  take  me  from  your 
side, 

Who  vould  care  for  you  und  baby,  after  Hans  vos  gone  und  died  '? 
For  the  vorld  is  cold  und  selfish  ven  on  charity  ve  call, 
Und  the  vidow's  heart  is  saddened  by  the  tears  dot  often  fall, 
As  alone  she  sits  und  vatches  to  the  smiles  dot  often  greep 
Across  the  face  of  baby,  in  his  gradle  fast  asleep." 

So  I  choin  me  den  the  Voodmen  chust  so  quickly  as  I  can. 
Und  I  feel  so  glad  und  happy  now,  just  like  anoder  man  , 
I  sing  und  vissel  gaily  ven  to  vork  I  go  avay, 
Und  I  go  me  straight  home  early  at  the  glosing  of  the  day, 
Und  Gatrina  she  was  happy,  for  she  knows  dot  Hans  has  done 
For  the  sake  of  her  und  baby,  vot  is  right  for  every  one  ; 
Und  the  thought  brings  bleasure  mit  it  like  the  smiles  dot  dance  und 
greep. 

Across  the  face  of  baby  in  his  gradle  fast  asleep. 

If  you  ask  vy  I  was  broud  of  our  Voodmen  Camp  und  vork, 
I  should  boint  you  mit  great  bleasure  to  our  managers  and  clerk. 
Efery  face  vill  bear  inspection,  if  examined  mit  a  chart, 
Efery  face  is  a  reflection  of  an  honest  Voodman's  heart. 
Ven  I  study  dem  together,  or  I  take  them  von  by  von, 
I  chust  say,  "Thou  faithful  servants,  all  your  vork  has  been  veil 
done." 

Und  I  feel  some  smile  of  bleasure  den  across  my  own  face  greep, 
As  I  lay  my  Voodmen's  "  baber  "  down  und  go  me  off  to  sleep 


Selected  Literature. 


xcv 


Awakened  Memories. 

BY  C.  C.  HASSLER. 


Seems  to  me  there's  no  hour  so  lonesome 

As  when  through  the  day  we  have  passed, 
And  the  shadowy  shades  of  the  evening 

On  everything  'round  us  is  cast ; 
When  the  only  sound  near  us  familiar, 

That  memories  dear  can  recall, 
Is  the  old  clock  that  never  stops  ticking 

From  the  shelf  where  it  stands  on  the  wall. 

It  has  noted  the  moments  of  meeting 

With  loved  ones  whose  footsteps  we  knew. 
And  the  hour  of  parting  we  shrank  from, 

Less  welcome  the  nearer  it  drew. 
Thus  through  the  long  years,  in  all  seasons, 

Be  it  midsummer,  spring-time,  or  fall, 
Like  a  friend,  the  old  clock  has  kept  ticlcing 

Prom  the  shelf  where  it  stands  on  tlie  wall. 

All  the  sounds  that  were  once  so  annoying. 

The  boisterous  laughter  and  shout. 
Our  lonely  hearts  now  would  but  welcome 

Once  more  to  hear  gladly  ring  out. 
Those  voices  perhaps  in  the  future. 

Nevermore  on  our  ear  they  shall  fall. 
To  drown  the  old  clock's  steady  ticking 

As  it  sounds  from  the  shelf  on  the  wall. 

We  can  listen  to  sounds  of  sweet  music, 

To  the  old  songs  of  childhood,  and  feel 
Down  the  cheek,  slowly,  sadly,  but  surely. 

The  tear  drop  unconsciously  steal. 
But  at  eve,  now,  instead  of  sweet  music. 

There  echoes  thro'  parlor  and  hall. 
Just  the  old  clock'^s  loud  but  weird  ticking, 

From  the  shelf  where  it  stands  on  the  wall. 

One  by  one,  from  the  old  home  departing, 

Like  birds  from  the  parent  nest  flown. 
We  watch  them  go  out  on  life's  journey 

Over  life's  rugged  pathway  alone. 
One  by  one  we  will  wait  their  home-coming, 

One  by  one  each  loved  image  recall. 
That  will  live  when  the  old  clock  no  longer 

Ticks  away  from  the  shelf  on  the  wall. 


xcvi  Selected  Literature. 

Modern  Woodmen  of  America, 

ACROSTIC. 

BY  MRS.  M.  L.  FOLLETT,  LE  CLAIRE,  IOWA. 


Marching-  as  an  army,  over  sixty  thousand  strong- ; 
Often  called  to  battle  with  the  hosts  of  sin  and  wrong  ; 
Daring  to  protect  the  weakest,  who  to  us  belong-, 
Each  lodge  g-oes  marching  on  ! 

Recognition  and  assistance  to  our  brothers,  one  and  all, 
Ne'er  forgetting  the  bereaved  ones,  when  by  death  our  comrades  fall; 
Welcoming  into  our  circle  rich  and  poor,  and  great  and  small. 
Our  order  goes  marching  on. 

Oh,  proclaim  the  joyful  tidings  all  throughout  the  great  northwest ! 
Draw  our  Neighbors,  Modern  Woodmen,  from  among  the  noblest,  best; 
Modern  Woodmen  !  while  they  proffer  aid  to  every  honored  guest. 
Evermore  go  marching  on. 

No  craft  is  more  courageous,  should  oppression  bar  the  way. 

Or  treason  dare  to  lift  its  hydra  head  in  any  way. 

For  a  Woodman's  axe  hews  to  the  line,  let  chips  fall  where  they  may, 

And  our  braves  go  marching  on. 

May  the  blessing  of  the  Lord  of  Hosts  on  every  Camp  descend. 
Each  Woodman  on  the  arm  of  truth  and  righteousness  depends ; 
Remember,  victory  comes  to  all  who  are  faithful  to  the  end. 
In  God  go  marching  on. 

Calling  every  man  a  brother,  making  every  man  a  friend, 
All  the  world  may  go  marching  on. 


Hew  to  the  I/ine,  Boys  ! 


"Gather  up  the  fragments,  that  nothing  be  lost." — Bible. 

Hew  to  the  line,  boys,  hew  to  the  line, 

Let  the  chips  fall  where  they  may  ; 
We  will  gather  them  all,  both  great  and  small, 

Perchance  for  a  rainy  day. 
For  the  Woodman's  wife,  when  her  work  is  done, 

And  close  to  the  ingle  sits, 
Will  bring  from  her  basket  of  proverbs  wise 

Some  of  those  golden  chips. 


Selected  Literature. 


xcvii 


Hew  to  the  line,  boys,  hew  to  the  line, 

Let  the  chips  fall  fast,  indeed  ; 
We  will  gather  them  all,  both  great  and  small, 

And  bid  the  work  God  speed. 
For  the  widow's  home,  a  desolate  place. 

Some  chips  of  love  may  need  ; 
Then  out  with  loving  hands  and  hearts 

To  do  those  Christ-like  deeds. 

Hew  to  the  line,  boys,  hew  to  the  line, 

Let  the  chips  fall,  great  and  small ; 
With  willing  hands  and  loving  heai-ts 

We  will  gather  them  one  and  all. 
To  some  who  have  climbed  life's  rugged  hill, 

And  are  now  on  the  other  side. 
Some  kindly  chips  for  ''.he  aged  ones 

Might  comfort  their  eventide. 

Hew  to  the  line,  boys,  hew  to  the  line. 

Let  the  chips  fall  where  they  will ; 
Give  to  the  young  man  starting  out 

His  mission  in  life  to  fill. 
Neighbor,  some  chips  of  counsel  for  him 

When  tossed  by  the  world,  and  driven. 
And  remember  who  said,  "let  nothing  be  lost,'' 

The  poor  to  us  have  been  given. —  Biirli  B(iv'k\ 


Truth,  if  not  Poetry, 

BY  C.  C.  HASSLER. 


When  the  neighbors  get  to  crowdin' 
Thro'  the  door  from  off  the  street, 

With  their  wives  and  children  with  'em, 
Loaded  down  with  things  to  eat, 

An'  the  smell  of  good  old  coffee 
Comes  from  out  the  ante-room  — 

Jist  like  your  mother  made  it 
With  its  glorious  perfume  ; 

Oh,  its  then  I  feel  like  shoutin', 
An'  I  think  I  cannot  wait 

For  the  chicken  legs  and  gizzards, 
Loaded  down  upon  your  plate ; 

An'  it  seems  to  me  there's  nothin' 


xcviii 


Selected  Literature, 


Suits  the  neighbors,  one  and  all, 

As  the  time  when  Woodmen  gather 
Ai  a  banquet  at  their  hall. 

Still  I'm  glad  that  summer's  comin', 
And  that  soon  the  woods  will  ring 

With  the  notes  that  feathered  songsters 
Always  warble  as  they  sing  ; 

For  it's  then  the  jolly  Woodmen 
Always  feel  as  if  they  must 

Have  barbecues  or  suthin' 
Like  'em  in  the  woods  or  bust ; 

And  the  visions  now  of  baskets 
Loaded  down  with  things  to  eat, 

And  the  plunkin'  of  the  fiddle 
As  it  stirs  the  youngsters'  feet. 

Makes  me  all  the  more  the  gladder,^ 
For  I  know  there's  nothin'  takes 

As  well  as  Woodmen's  frolics, 
Interspersed  with  pie  and  cake  ; 

An'  it  seem  to  me  there's  nothin' 
Lengthens  out  a  neighbor's  life 

Like  a  picnic  in  the  forest 
With  your  children  and  your  wife, 

When  you  know  if  you  get  hungry. 
That  you  needn't  be  afraid 

Some  one  will  ketch  you  eatin' 
With  your  fingers,  in  the  shade  ; 

Where  the  nick-nacks,  they  are  lookin' 
So  invitin'  that  you  jest 

Can  hardly  wait  to  hide  'em 
Underneath  your  Sunday  vest. 

Oh,  its  times  like  them  a  comin' 
That's  acausin'  me  to  smile, 

For  I  know  one  Woodman's /cuKn's 
Just  about  that  very  style. 


No  Assessment  in  November. 

BY  C.  C.  HASSLER. 


No  assessment  in  November  I 

Well,  if  that  don't  beat  the  Jews  1 

Nary  a  doggoned  cent  demanded. 
Now,  that'ri  what  I  call  news. 


Selected  Literature. 


xcix 


No  assessment,  when  I  hear  'em 

In  the  other  orders  say 
They  air  not  surprised  when  hearin' 

Two  and  three  they  have  to  pay. 

No  assessment  in  November  I 

Well,  I  kalkilate  that  means 
This  old  silver  Daddy  dollar's 

Goin'  down  in  my  old  jeans. 
Won't  the  neighbors  stir  and  hustle 

'Round  and  bring  the  fellers  in. 
When  they  tell  'em  how  the  Woodmen's 

Head  Clerk  made  the  neighbors  grin  ! 

No  assessment  in  November  ! 

Just  the  month,  too,  when  it  takes 
Every  dime  and  every  dollar 

That  a  poor  workin'  feller  makes. 
Shoes  to  buy  for  Joe  and  Mary, 

Taters  for  the  winter's  store, 
Books  and  things  for  John  and  Sairy, 

Things  you  hain't  thought  of  before. 

N,o  assessment  in  November  ! 

Well,  I  guess  them  old-line  chaps 
Won't  be  tickled  when  they  hear  how 

Cost  of  good  insurance  draps  ; 
Won't  be  comin'  buzzin  'round  us 

Like  a  swarm  of  bumble  bees, 
When  we  pint  to  this  here  notice. 
No  assessment,  if  you  please." 

No  assessment  in  November  ! 

Well,  now  that's  what  I  call  light  — 
Managers  like  we  hev  knockin' 

Double  headers  out  of  sight. 
Harmony  and  good-will  keepin' 

Step  to  music    'long  the  line," 
Woodmen  jubilees  a  drawin' 

Crowds  of  neighbors  glad  to  jine. 

No  assessment  in  November  ! 

We  hain't  crying  after  stuff  ; 
Our  Head  Banker  don't  keep  drawin' 

When  he  knows  he's  got  enough. 
Head  Physician,  he  don't  Swallow 

Doubtful  risks,  but  takes  the  cream, 
When  he's  through,  he  can  jist  mount  a 

Stump  and  make  the  "eagle  scream." 


Selected  Literature. 


No  assessment  in  November  ! 

Tell  the  world  to  stop  and  watch 
How  the  Woodmen  stock  is  raisin', 

Every  day  another  notch. 
Lay  in  fruit  and  water  plenty, 

Buy  and  sell  for  all  your  worth, 
Keep  your  camp-fire  brightly  burnin', 

Let  her  boom,  we  want  the  earth. 

No  assessment  in  November  ! 

Means  that  fewer  tear-drops  flow 
Over  fathers',  husbands',  brothers' 

Graves,  than  did  two  months  ago. 
Fewer  little  broken-hearted 

Children  papa's  footsteps  miss, 
Comin'  home  at  night  to  meet  them 

With  a  loving,  welcome  kiss. 

No  assessment  in  November  ! 

Stop,  jest  let  the  Woodmen  give 
Praise  to  Him  whose  mercy  plainly 

'Tis  thro'  which  to-day  we  live. 
Praise  to  Him  whose  hand  has  guided 

From  the  Woodmen's  door  away. 
Death's  dark  angel,  whose  unerring 

Flight  no  human  hand  can  stay. 


The  Modern  Woodmen, 

BY  D.  C.  ZINK. 


Oh,  bright  as  Woodmen's  beauty's  dream, 

Which  active  fancies  trace. 
Are  they  who  rule  with  sway  supreme, 

The  guardian  nymphic  race. 
O'er  earth's  broad  prairies  and  state, 

The  Modern  Woodmen  open  bars 
To  strangers  ;  through  evening's  vaulted  gate 

Look  down  the  twinkling  stars. 

Of  late,  to  meet  in  social  "  camp," 

Those  neighbors  do  convene, 
And  joining  in  their  glee  and  sport, 

Where  strangers  are  oftimes  seen, 


Selected  Literature. 


With  cordial  smile  and  kindly  mind, 
They  meet  their  neighbors  there, 

And  give  an  invitation  kind 

To  strangers  wandering  there. 

For  leagues  on  leagues  are  hickory  trees, 

And  fig  their  branches  fling 
To  bring  with  treasures  such  as  these, 

Say,  what  can  neighbors  bring  ? 
That  little  pile  of  rugged  chips, 

And  forest  sear  and  brown. 
Where  only  sound  the  Woodmen's  axe. 

Who  cut  the  hooppoles  down. 

Rise  up,  my  neighbors,  I  heard  her  call. 

Ye  faithful  ones  and  free, 
And  ye,  my  stately  Woodmen  tall, 

In  throngs,  rise  up,  ye  ! 
And  soon  the  Woodmen  'round  her  came 

In  answer  to  her  cry  ; 
And  swiftly  gathered  round  that  dame, 

The  Modern  Woodman's  wife. 

The  farmer  left  unsown  his  land. 

The  tradesman  fled  his  shop, 
The  bold  mechanic  from  his  hand 

Let  plane  and  hammer  drop  ; 
And  rushed  from  every  furnace  fire 

That  lights  our  dales  at  night, 
The  Woodmen  bringing  in  their  might 

To  grant  the  widow's  right. 

With  brows  bedewed  with  drops  of  sweat. 

Those  brawny  toilers  join  ; 
Each  wore  a  magic  amulet. 

Transmitting  toil  to  coin. 
Indignant  in  their  own  kind  way. 

They  rally  on  the  green 
To  sweep  the  scorners  from  the  path 

Of  their  own  Woodmen  queen. 

We  send  our  deputies,  our  joy,  our  pride, 

To  canvass  throughout  the  northern  lands, 
That  Modern  Woodmen  over  prairies  wide 

May  tread  thy  golden  sands  ; 
Your  Menes  by  the  clift  and  canons  deep. 

When  dark  the  rivers  run. 
And  Modern  Woodmen  never  stop 

Beneath  the  tropic  sun. 


cii 


Selected  Literature. 


Who  on  the  plain  attain  success 

Like  the  Modern  Woodmen  can  ? 
Who  towers  now  ahead  of  the  rest  ? 

The  Modern  Woodmen  America  man. 
And  evermore  where  brains  abound, 

And  talent  heads  the  van 
Of  progress,  there  will  still  be  found. 

The  Modern  Woodmen  America  man. 


Keep  Humpin\ 

BY  A.  P.  ROBERTS. 


I  remember  the  time  when  I  was  a  lad, 
An'  lived  on  the  farm  long  with  ma  an'  dad  ; 
In  the  long,  hot  days,  how  I'd  have  to  hoe 
Out  in  the  cornfield,  row  after  row. 
How  I'd  think  of  the  fishes  that  lay  in  the  brook. 
An'  I  just  a  longin'  to  take  my  hook 

An'  line,  and  sprawl  by  that  ole  trout  stream. 
For  I  loved  in  them  days  to  loaf  an'  to  dream  — 
An'  watch  the  fish  a-jumpin' ; 
Then  I'd  groan  and  bemoan  my  unfortunate  lot, 
I'd  go  to  my  father  an'  say,  "  It's  so  hot  — 
Can't  the  corn  and  pertatoes  wait  well  as  not  ?  " 
But  my  father,  he'd  say 
In  a  stern  sort  of  way  — 
"  Keep  humpin'." 

Then  I'd  work  with  a  will  till  each  sep'rate  row 
Stood  forth  without  airy  a  weed  to  show. 
An'  each  little  rock  I  would  duly  install 
In  its  own  proper  niche  in  the  ole  crumblin'  wall, 
An,  I'd  say  to  my  father,  as  proud  as  could  be, 
"  Ive  finished  my  work,  dad  !  "  and  then  in  high  glee 

Off  I'd  go,  skippin'  and  jumpin'. 
Then  he'd  say,  "  It's  well  done  exceptin'  one  spot ; 
Now  bring  down  them  cows  from  the  north  pasture  lot  — 
There's  no  time  to  shirk  —  a  farmer  has  got 
(So  my  father  would  say 
In  a  stern  sort  of  way) 

To  keep  humpin'." 


Selected  Literature. 


ciii 


Take  this  for  your  maxim,  and  may  it  e'er  be 
Deep-seated  and  firm  as  the  roots  of  a  tree  ; 

Whatever  you  work,  whether  peddling  corn- 
Salve  or  door-mats,  or  tootin'  a  horn. 
Or  sellin'  of  clothes  line  or  cloth  by  the  yard, 
You'll  find  that  your  duty'll  be  much  the  less  hard, 
If  you  put  to  your  labor  the  heft  of  your  soul ; 
Half-hearted  won't  win,  you  can't  reach  the  goal 
By  occasional  skippin'  an'  jumpin'. 
If  you're  fully  determined,  my  friend,  to  git  there, 
You  mustn't  sit  down  by  the  wayside  and  swear  ; 
You  can  gather  more  courage  from  a  fervent  prayer, 
And  as  father  would  say, 
In  a  stern  kind  of  way, 
"  Keep  humpin'." 


Good -Bye. 

BY  C.  C.  HASSLER. 


Farewell  is  a  word  that  may  serve  to  express, 

In  a  measure,  our  thoughts  as  we  part. 
But  it  fails  to  impress  like  an  old  fashion  word 

That  is  born  in  a  fond  mother's  heart. 
It  will  live  thro'  a  life  of  danger  and  sin, 

Tho'  with  speed  of  the  light  they  should  fly, 
And  the  heart  will  grow  sad  as  in  fancy  we  hear  — 

God  bless  you,  my  boy,  good-bye. 

Farewell  may  a  meaning  convey  as  it  falls 

From  the  lips  of  the  careless  and  gay, 
But  it  fails  to  suffice  the  sad  heart  that  asks. 

Will  they  miss  me  when  I  am  away  ? 
Oh  !  not  for  the  world  would  we  banish  that  word. 

Though  with  tears  it  may  moisten  the  eye  ;  \ 
But  the  heart  will  grow  soft  as  it  comes  back  to  us  — 

God  bless  you,  my  boy,  good-bye. 

Good-bye  !    Let  it  live  while  a  mother's  heart  holds 

A  love  that  none  other  can  know  ; 
There  is  no  other  word  that  can  soften  her  grief 

As  her  hands  press  the  dear  ones  that  go, 
Tho'  her  lips  may  but  whisper  the  sad  parting,  still 

'Tis  the  soul  that's  expressed  in  the  eye, 
And  the  heart  of  the  absent  will  soften  to  hear — 

God  bless  you,  my  boy,  good-bye. 


Selected  Literature. 
He  Was  In  It. 

FROM  THE  SILVER  LEAF. 


They  had  a  g-ood  Camp  at  his  very  door  — 

He  wasn't  in  it. 
They  brought  him  a  chance  for  protecting-  the  poor  — 

He  wasn't  in  it. 
Let  them  work  themselves  as  he  had  done ; 
They  wouldn't  need  "aid"  of  any  one 
If  they  hadn't  wasted  each  g-olden  minute  — 

He  wasn't  in  it. 

So  he  passed  the  lodg-e  with  haughty  tread  — 

He  wasn't  in  it. 
And  he  scorned  the  good  with  averted  head  — 

He  wasn't  in  it. 
When  men  in  halls  of  fraternity  met 
He  saw  their  friendship  without  regret ; 
Too  high  the  mark  for  him  to  win  it  — 

He  wasn't  in  it. 

A  hearse  crept  down  the  street  one  day  — 

He  was  in  it. 
The  funeral  trappings  made  a  display  — 

He  was  in  it. 
St.  Peter  received  him  with  a  book  and  bell  — : 
"  My  friend  you  have  a  ticket  to  —  well, 
Car  will  go  right  down  in  a  minute  !  " 

He  was  in  it. 


Neighbor  Grimes. 

BY  FINN  PHENIX. 


"When  the  silence  of  fear  came  over  the  Camp, 
And  the  flesh  on  our  bones  felt  chilly  and  damp ; 
When  the  "previous  question  "  had  silenced  the  jaw, 
And  the  delegates  wrestled  with  wonder  and  awe, 
To  behold  a  grey  visage,  with  fire  in  his  eye 
To  stand  and  declare  he  would  talk,  or  he'd  die. 
Then  his  wonderful  tones  rang  out  like  the  chimes 
Of  the  old  anvil  chorus  —  why,  we  knew  it  was  Grimes  ! 
Grimes  !  we  knew  it  was  Grimes. 


Selected  Literature, 


Though  he  spoke  to  the  point — for  he  always  spoke  well, 

But  when  he  would  cease,  no  mortal  could  tell. 

For  he'd  move  to  amend  or  to  table  it  all. 

To  take  in  Chicago,  or  strike  out  "  St.  Paul ;  " 

But  once  on  his  tongue  a  tartar  he  caught, 

When  "  to  order  "  he  called  Neighbor  Mead  on  the  spot, 

For  speaking  now  twice  —  the  worst  of  all  crimes  — 

But  Mead  answered  back  —  my  name  isn't  Grimes  ; 

Grimes  :    My  name  is  not  Grimes. 

Alas  !  what  a  joy,  we  know  not  our  fate. 

To  some  it  comes  early  ;  to  others  comes  late  ; 

To  some  it's  a  "  jewel,"  to  others  a  "  crown  ;  " 

To  some  it's  despair,  to  others  renown. 

Though  seldom  it  is  that  both  come  to  one, 

But  fortune  decreed,  and  the  deed  was  well  done. 

When  Jewell  arose  and  declared,  forty  times 

Hath  he  spoken  this  hour,  the  neighbor  named  Grimes  ; 

Grimes  :  the  neighbor  named  Grimes. 

But  then,  to  all  things  there  cometh  the  end. 

To  the  bad,  when  their  ways  with  diligence  mend  ; 

To  the  good,  when  their  labors  are  truly  well  done. 

So  it  came  to  the  Camp  when  its  race  had  been  run  ; 

With  its  record  of  good,  it  adjourned  sine  die. 

When  Messe  led  the  "  neighbor  with  fire  in  his  eye  " 

To  make  the  last  motion  ;  and  yet  many  times 

Do  we  hope,  one  and  all,  to  meet  Neighbor  Grimes, 

Grimes,  our  good  Neighbor  Grimes, 

To  whom  I  indite  these  immortal  rhymes. 


Old  Man  Poverty. 

BY  F.  A.  FALKENBURG. 


Down  a  village  street  hobbled  a  man. 
He  was  old,  decrepit,  weak,  and  wan  ; 
His  thick  hair  covered  his  shoulders  quite  — 
'Twas  long  and  wavy  and  shining  white. 
His  eyes  were  dim,  while  his  bony  hand 
Clutched  a  frail  cane  ;  he  could  scarcely  stand. 
Those  are  not  clothes,  but  a  lot  of  rags 
Over  his  back  and  around  his  legs. 


cvi 


Selected  Literature. 


Are  those  shoes  ?    No,  he  cannot  get  trust, 
But  his  naked  feet  are  covered  with  dust. 
He  is  never  seen  in  a  palace  car, 
Yet  visits  much  and  has  traveled  far  ; 
He  has  seen  each  city,  village,  and  town, 
From  the  rising  sun  to  the  going  down  ; 
From  pole  to  pole,  from  shore  to  shore. 
He  visits  each  day  the  suffering  poor  ; 
His  dull  sunken  eye,  his  long  white  hair, 
And  his  bony  hand  go  everywhere. 

He  paused  by  a  cottage  gate  to  rest. 
Saw  flowers  by  summer  breeze  caressed. 
Sweet  children  playing  beside  the  door. 
And,  peering  in,  saw  something  more  — 
A  mother  lulling  her  babe  to  sleep  — 
Baby  asleep  and  mother  to  weep. 

Old  Man  Poverty  then  knocks  with  a  grin. 
Madam,  he  said,  may  I  not  come  in  ? 
Oliver  is  dead  ;  we  knew  he  was  poor. 
And  Old  Man  Poverty  is  at  your  door. 

You  cannot  come  in,  she  firmly  said  ; 
My  husband  was  poor,  and  now  he  is  dead ; 
But  Oliver  loved  us  too  well  by  far 
To  leave  us  in  your  uncertain  care. 
Your  shadow  shall  never  cross  my  door  ; 
I  am  a  Woodman's  widow,  sir. 


Our  Camp- Fire, 

BY  M.  H.  UNDERWOOD. 


May  it  never  lose  its  lustre. 

Nor  its  embers  cease  to  glow. 
Until  myriads  round  it  cluster, 

And  all  its  pleasures  know. 
Until  through  every  shady  forest. 

Over  hill  and  through  ravine. 
Shall  be  heard  the  Woodmen's  music, 

Shall  be  seen  his  camp-fire's  gleam. 
'Till  e'en  the  birds  shall  sit  enraptured, 

Listening  to  the  Woodmen's  lays  ; 
Till  festive  frogs  shall  cease  their  croakings 

In  honor  of  our  camp-fire's  blaze. 


Selected  Literature. 


cvii 


Let  the  idle  and  the  thoughtless 

Drift  along-  with  dripping-  oar  ; 
Cloudless  skies  may  bend  above  them, 

Pleasant  scenes  may  skirt  life's  shore. 
In  their  shallops  with  their  loved  ones 

They  in  peace  to-day  may  sail, 
Dreaming-  not  that  clouds  may  gather, 

Dreaming  not  of  storm  and  gale. 
Heeding  not  the  plaintive  calling 

From  stranded  barks  along  life's  strand. 
To  the  struggling,  ship- wrecked  sailors 

Reaching  out  no  helping  hand. 

Wisdom  bids  us  heed  the  calling, 

That  comes  to  us  along  life's  tide 
Lest  storms  and  flood  our  skill  shall  baffle, 

And  friendly  aid  to  us  be  denied. 
Thus  we  anchor  in  the  harbor 

Where  the  Woodmen  camp-fire  burns  ; 
In  its  square  we  take  our  places 

Cast  our  pebble  in  the  urn. 
Counting  not  the  moments  wasted 

For  we  have  seen  its  mystic  gleam  — 
Aid  through  life  the  adopted  stranger, 

And  cheer  his  home  when  ends  life's  dream. 


Protecting  the  Widow  and  Orphans. 

ADAPTED  FROM  INSURANCE  OBSERVER  (ENGLAND),  1848. 


When  God  removed  papa  to  heaven, 
And  ma  was  left  to  strive  for  seven. 
With  scarce  enough  for  burial  fees 
(So  lingering  was  poor  Pa's  disease); 
Though  full  of  grief,  we'd  no  despair, 
Relations  spoJce  so  kind  and  fair. 

Our  grandpa  said  that  he,  for  one, 
Would  think  and  see  what  could  be  done. 
Our  Uncle  William  and  our  aunt, 
Hoped  we'd  never  come  to  want ; 
But  mother's  brothers  talked  the  best  — 
A  great  deal  kinder  than  the  rest. 


cviii 


Selected  Literature. 


They  said  that  home  they'd  take  us  all, 

Only  their  rooms  were  few  and  small. 

We'd  promises  from  Uncle  Page, 

To  push  us  forward  when  of  age. 

They  then  went  home  —  but  stop  I  miss  — 

They  gave  us  every  one  —  a  kiss  ; 

And  said,  "  Be  good,  and  mind  mamma. 

And  we'll  be  to  you  —  papa  !  " 

So  much  engaged  were  they  at  home, 
For  many  weeks  they  could  not  come  ; 
Until  they  heard  mamma  had  found 
A  writing  for  five  hundred  pound  ; 
Which  some  fraternal  office  paid. 
So  ma  commenced  a  genteel  trade. 

And  then  they  came,  it  seemed  so  funny, 
"^o  beg  mamma  to  lend  them  money  ! 
But  ma  said,    No  ;  if  you  are  poor, 
A  trifle  will  your  life  insure  ; 
And  then  the  office  [our  best  friend). 
Whenever  your  good  life  shall  end. 
Will  comfort  to  your  orphans  send." 


We^re  a  Great  F'raternal  Army. 

BY  THEO.  D.  C.  MILLER,  M.  D. 


We've  enlisted  for  the  conflict 

In  the  great  fraternal  war  ; 
There  are  foes  to  meet  and  conquer. 

We  may  bear  full  many  a  scar  I 
But  our  leaders  are  undaunted 

And  we  all  are  in  the  mood 
To  bear  one  another's  burdens 

And  to  do  each  other  good. 

We  have  mustered  for  the  battle 

O'er  our  country's  broad  domain. 
From  the  California  borders 

To  the  fir-clad  coast  of  Maine  ; 
From  the  sunny  vales  of  Texas 

To  giant  Lawrence's  seaward  flow, 
We  will  stand  by  our  brave  leaders 

And  we'll  follow  where  they  go. 


Selected  Literature. 


cix 


We  shall  meet  and  fight  and  conquer 

All  the  hordes  of  wealth  and  power, 
If  we  are  in  strength  united 

In  each  dark  and  trying  hour  ; 
For  our  ranks  are  growing  stronger 

And  we  each  are  in  the  mood 
To  be  true  to  one  another 

As  we  do  each  other  good. 

Should  the  daily  press  defame  us, 

In  its  selfish  greed  for  gain. 
As  it  pleads  for  life  insurance, 

Till  the  last  redoubt  we  gain  ; 
We  will  meet  the  sordid  minions 

V7ith  a  zeal  no  power  can  quail. 
And,  with  good  right  arm  extended 

O'er  the  foe  we  will  prevail. 

We  are  coming  from  the  mountain. 

Marching  o'er  the  fertile  plan. 
As  a  great  fraternal  army, 

Countless  as  the  sheaves  of  grain ; 
And  the  people  all  around  us 

Are  enlisting  for  the  war, 
Eager  for  the  hour  of  triumph 

As  they  proudly  bear  each  scar. 

On  !  right  onward  !  is  our  motto. 

In  the  work  we  find  to  do ; 
We  are  pledged  to  one  another 

To  be  loyal,  just,  and  true  ! 
And,  when  we  are  crowned  as  victors. 

When  fraternal  peace  is  won, 
May  we  all  receive  life's  blessings 

For  the  grand  work  we  have  done. 


Parody  on    Psalm  of  I^ife,*' 


Life  insurance  men  remind  us 
We  can  make  our  wives  sublime, 
And,  departing,  leave  behind  us 
Widows  worthy  of  our  time. 
We  will  give  them  such  a  send-off 
On  the  life  insurance  plan 
That,  when  we  departing  end  off, 
They  can  scoop  some  other  man. 


cx 


Selected  Literature. 


They  Never  Would  he  Missed. 


There  are  men  in  our  fraternity  who  never  come  to  lodge, 

And  whose  claims  we  can't  resist,  for  they  have  them  on  the  list ; 

But  if  their  names  were  stricken  off,  so  far  as  we  can  judge, 

They  never  would  be  missed,  they  never  would  be  missed. 

They  cannot  give  the  password,  and  they  do  not  know  the  sign. 

And  of  the  order's  good  or  ill,  they  never  read  a  line  ; 

They  growl  about  assessments,  and  they  grudge  to  pay  their  dues, 

And  every  call  for  charity  they  stubbornly  refuse. 

If  all  the  brothers  were  like  these,  the  lodge  could  not  exist ; 

And  they  never  would  be  missed,  they  never  would  be  missed. 

—  Sam  Booth. 

And  there's  the  accidentals  who  now  and  then,  en  masse. 

Crowd  in  to  beat  some  motion  that  some  true  men  wish  to  pass ; 

They're  seen  at  an  election,  or  when  a  feast  is  spread. 

And  at  the  loaded  tables  are  always  near  the  head  ; 

They  always  have  some  hobby,  and  on  it  strong  insist  — 

Should  they  stop  there  accidental  calls,  they  never  would  be  missed. 

—  W.  H.  B. 

There's  the  self-important  member  who  thinks  he  knows  it  all. 
Whose  principle  pastime  is  gyrating  around  the  hall ; 
He  makes  himself  obnoxious  with  his  winks  and  knowing  nods. 
And  affects  to  have  the  power  and  the  wisdom  of  the  gods. 
So  we've  got  him  on  the  list,  and  his  neck  we  want  to  twist. 
For  he  never  would  be  missed,  he  never  would  be  missed. 

K.  of  H.  Beporter. 

But  what  about  the  kicker,  the  chap  with  chronic  bile. 

Who  since  his  advent  to  the  world,  was  never  known  to  smile  ! 

He  kicks  against  the  widow,  and  the  orphan,  and  the  sick. 

And  the  measly,  fly-blown  rascal  should  be  pounded  with  a  brick. 

If  old  Nick  should  run  across  him  and  his  ownership  insist. 

Lots  of  the  folks  would  jump  for  gladness,  he  never  would  be  missed. 

— Forresters'' Magazine. 

There's  the  "  watch-dog  of  the  treasury,"  who's  always  there  to  see 

That  nothing  is  paid  out,  whate'er  the  cause  may  be  ; 

Relief,  distress,  or  charity  —  calls  pass  unheeded  by. 

The  foxy  member  has  his  way  —  progress  would  be  to  die. 

The  funds  are  his,  he  seems  to  think,  and  must  be  kept  intact 

For  his  children  by  and  by,  when  he  is  off  the  track. 

We  love  (?)  to  see  him  run  the  lodge,  and  always  shall  insist, 

That  when  he's  called  from  off  the  earth  the  lodge  shall  still  exist. 

And  he  never  will  be  missed,  he  never  will  be  missed. 

—  Western  Odd  Fellow. 


Selected  Literature. 


cxi 


But  what  about  the  fellow,  who  with  gigg-les  and  with  grins, 

Will  set  his  jaws  to  going-  just  as  soon  as  work  begins  ; 

He's  sure  to  gab  and  gossip  'bout  the  weather  and  the  drouth, 

'Till  the  candidate  hears  nothing,  for  his  everlasting  mouth. 

Do  you  think  that  we  would  miss  him  if  his  lower  jaw  would  break, 

Or  grumble  if  a  "  special  "  should  be  levied  for  his  sake. 

You  can  bet  to  pay  the  dollar,  we  the  payment  would  remit. 

Unless  we  had  assurance  'twould  at  least  be  in  a  twist ; 

So,  when  with  other  nuisances,  you're  making  up  your  list, 

Just  take  this  fellow  with  you,  for  he  never  will  be  missed. 

—  C.  C.  Hasslei%  in  Modern  Woodman, 


To  Wayne  H,  Parks,  Head  Adviser  i8S6, 
Deceased. 

BY  DR.  P.  L.  MC  KINNIE. 


In  honored  memory  of  a  noble  man, 

A  worthy  Woodman  and  faithful  friend. 

'Tis  well,  though  bitter  be  the  smart ; 

He  wounds  who  knows  to  heal ; 
We  bear  the  blow  with  trusting  heart, 

For  out  of  woe  he  bringeth  weal. 

And  Woodmen  mourn  a  neighbor  kind. 

To  councils  here  he'll  come  no  more. 
The  Great  Head  Consul  of  mankind 
Hath  summoned  him  the  valley  o'er. 

Where  no  dark  pebbles  cast  a  shade. 

Where  camp-fires  bright  eternal  burn  ; 

Where  hope  and  fear  at  rest  are  laid, 
White  pebbles  only  in  the  urn. 

Where  peace  her  mantle  wraps  o'er  all ; 

In  bright  Elysianfield 
He  hears  the  honored  Woodman's  call 

To  wear  the  crown  and  shield. 

His  life's  good  fruitage  hath  he  left 

For  neighbors,  friends,  and  Woodmen  true ; 
As  unto  his  sad  ones  bereft 

We  would  to  ours,  so  may  we  do. 


cxii 


Selected  Literature. 


And  thus  his  life  in  word  and  deed 
By  our  kind  action  further  grow  ; 

With  faith  and  hope  and  love  our  creed, 
*'  Pur  Autre  Vie  "  we  bestow. 


The  Birth  of  I/abor  and  Insurance, 

BY  JAMES  T.  PHELPS. 


We  are  told  as  a  reason, 

Of  the  close  of  the  season 

Of  idleness,  in  the  sweet  Garden  of  Eden, 

A  snake  and  young  Cain 

Caused  all  of  Ere's  pain, 
And  set  Adam  and  Abel  the  garden  to  weeding. 

Thus  labor  was  born 

To  all  that  is  human. 

By  the  charms  of  a  snake 

And  the  weakness  of  woman  ; 

Men  do  not  repine,  but  increase  their  endurance, 

And  strengthen  their  labor  by  the  aid  of  insurance. 


